


Might As Well

by HurricaneJane



Category: The 100 (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Clexa, F/F, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Weddings, booze, fake dating au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-13
Updated: 2020-08-13
Packaged: 2021-03-06 06:08:53
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 14
Words: 41,603
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25878703
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HurricaneJane/pseuds/HurricaneJane
Summary: An inside joke around the office has grown out of hand and now everyone thinks Lexa has a girlfriend.  When an office wedding rolls around, Lexa has run out of excuses as to where her non-existent better half is.  Just when she thinks she’s out of options and has to come clean, Clarke, a friend of a friend, moves back to town and is down to do a little acting.  Constant celebratory booze and a genuine fast friendship make everything fake start to feel a little too real.
Relationships: Clarke Griffin & Lexa, Clarke Griffin/Lexa
Comments: 205
Kudos: 1437





	1. And She Was Lying About It For Years!

**Author's Note:**

> You can find me on Tumblr as @thatonewherelexasachef if you have any questions!
> 
> Chapter One Summary: 
> 
> Lexa has a problem and her friends have an unconventional solution.

“I could kill you for this,” Lexa glared across the table at Anya who was staring at her phone.

Friday Happy Hour at the dive bar around the corner from the office had been a staple of Lexa and Anya’s work week for over a decade. They were best friends in college who graduated side by side with business degrees and found themselves in the same entry level class of salesmen for Grounder Inc, the biggest office supply company in the country. 

Twelve years ago they were fighting their way into small businesses to hock copy paper and toner. Lexa, now thirty-four, was the executive director of sales on the west coast, and the youngest director of sales in the country. Anya and her connivingly creative brain had moved to the sales strategy team after a brief stint in HR.

The happy hour tradition began back when they were young bucks, but it became more important as they switched roles, climbed higher and stopped seeing each other every day. Now that they both had offices on the executive floor of the building, the pair of best friends were back to seeing each other all the time.

For better or for worse.

“Oh, spare me,” Anya waved a hand before picking up her pint of beer. She didn’t look up. She had the face on that she saved for tedious emails that could have, and should have, waited for Monday morning. “You say that all the time and you never do it. Why are you so bent out of shape about this? It’s not a big deal.”

“It’s a very big deal! You put me in a shitty position to be a liar and a jackass!” Lexa snapped. She was thankful for the full beer in front of her after another extremely long week. “This is on you, by the way,” she gestured the glass at Anya who shrugged.

“That’s fair,” Anya sighed with relief before setting her phone, screen down, on the table. Her entire body relaxed. “Alright, it’s officially the weekend now.”

“And I’m officially screwed,” Lexa gave her a fake smile that carried the subtext of impending violence. She shrugged out of her blazer and draped it over the back of the booth.

“Officially seems a bit strong,” Anya rolled her eyes. She noticed that her office badge was still clipped on her lapel and tucked it away in her bag to erase the final reminder of the work week.

“There are some days that I don’t even really like you that much anymore,” Lexa pulled a big swig of her beer. “I love you to death. Probably always will. But I’m not always certain that I actually like you.”

“I get that a lot,” Anya tossed her hair over her shoulder sarcastically.

“I’m sure you do,” Lexa scowled.

In all of their years together, it was always Anya that made the poor choices and Lexa that went along for the ride whether she liked it or not, and then tried to get them out of trouble. In college, Anya was a wild animal. Lexa chased behind her swearing and using her good grades and good nature to talk their way out of Anya’s latest prank. Anya was the one to start conversations with strangers and then drop Lexa in to finish up. Lexa swore up and down that if she had a dollar for every time she told Anya ‘I don’t think this is a good idea,’ she could’ve taken a year off.

Anya frequently reminded Lexa that if they weren’t friends, and she didn’t have such exciting antics, Lexa would have very few stories worth telling.

“Well, hey!” Anya’s face lit up at someone behind Lexa.

“Happy Friday, boss ladies!” Lincoln arrived at the table with a pitcher of beer and an empty glass for himself. Anya scooted over in the booth so he could join them.

Lincoln was also in their rookie sales class. He got himself out of sales as quickly as possible and into distribution. He preferred a different flavor or pressure and was at the top of shipping and receiving now at the biggest warehouse in the company. His office was in the same industrial park as the home office where Anya and Lexa kept their nameplates on their desks. The crew of friends kept in touch primarily through happy hour beers almost every Friday, and it kept their friendships close.

He found himself as the mediator between the two fiery best friends when he felt he could handle it, but mostly enjoyed their back-and-forths quietly from the safe spot of having just a little less history with them. He liked thinking of them as the sisters he never had in all of the best ways.

“We’re not your bosses,” Lexa reminded him. She always did.

“Sure, not technically,” he shrugged and grinned. “But you’re a lot of other people’s bosses.”

“You have so many more people under you than I do,” Anya laughed as she reached for the pitcher and poured his beer for him. “My team has nine people on it and I only see seven of them four times a year.”

“And yours?” Lincoln raised a brow at Lexa with a grin.

Lexa glanced at a notification on her phone. They were setting up new recruits to start in the fourth quarter and all of her team managers were pouring emails in. Lexa over saw the regional sales directors who over saw the district sales directors who oversaw the ever-growing sales teams in California, Oregon and Washington. She was informed that morning that due to poor performance on another director’s part, she’d be getting Vegas added to her territory this fall because she could handle it and he couldn’t.

The job was stressful. She often felt like she was working twice as hard as all of the older, all male, tenured sales directors, but she loved it. A hustler her whole life, Lexa built her reputation completely on her own. She put herself through school, picked away at her masters while she worked constantly and stopped at nothing to climb to the top. The top of her class, the top of her team, the top of her tax bracket, the next promotion. 

And she was damn good at it.

“As of today,” Lexa sighed, skimming the email with the new news of Vegas. “Five hundred and sixteen.”

“Shiiit,” Anya looked at her with more seriousness of purpose. “They are gonna simply fuck you this fall, huh?”

“Seems everyone around me is fucking me these days,” Lexa glared at Anya.

“C’mon. No way,” Lincoln glanced back and forth between them.

“We’re not fucking each other!” Anya back handed him in the chest.

“Not literally, anyway,” Lexa scowled into her beer. “Remember how this asshole started a rumor around the office that I have a girlfriend?”

“Nice, I forgot about that,” Lincoln hid a snarky laugh in a sip of his drink. “How long has that been going on again?”

“Too long,” Lexa sighed.

“This total dickhead that we work with wouldn’t stop asking her for dates, and she didn’t want to deal with HR,” Anya began.

“You. You were in HR at the time. I didn’t want to deal with YOU,” Lexa jumped in.

“So, she told this jackwagon at a holiday party that she had a girlfriend to get him to back off,” Anya ignored her. “And I picked it up and ran with it because it gets her so jumpy and antsy and that’s fun for me.”

“You really didn’t belong in HR at all, did you,” Lincoln side eyed her.

“Yeah, no, not even kind of,” Anya replied earnestly. “Built the resume, made some connections, got out as fast as possible.”

“So? Who cares?” Lincoln shrugged and glanced Lexa’s way. “What’s the big deal?”

“I’m going to Aden’s wedding in a few weeks. He asked me to do a toast at the rehearsal dinner because he credits my mentoring and my work ethic to his success, which lead him to the promotion that took him to the east coast where he met his fiancé. Thanks to your pranks and your bullshit, he and all of the other people from the office seem to remember every goddamn pretend detail Anya has ever given them about the girlfriend that I do not have,” Lexa snapped. “And now they’re all so excited to meet her at the wedding!”

“Oh my god, you’re STILL doing the fake girlfriend pranks?” Lincoln gaped at Anya. 

“I mean,” Anya winced.

“Yes!” Lexa cried. “She is! And it has gotten so out of hand that I started to just go along with it. She’s gotten me so deep into this that I can’t decide if admitting that it was a lie all along or perpetuating the lie is worse. I keep panicking and making up fake excuses as to why my non-existent girlfriend can’t come to events, and I was hoping to make up another one for the wedding, but I simply couldn’t think of anything because I’m so. Fucking. Tired.”

Lexa held her phone up indicating that work was running her ragged and it chimed four times as more emails popped up on the screen.

“Yikes,” Lincoln grimaced.

“Managing your dumb rumor prank about me is so far down my to do list that it made people go away faster if I just lied and leaned into it!” Lexa’s voice rose as she grew more and more frustrated.

“Lex, I’m sorry!” Anya pleaded, still laughing and trying to stop. “It’s just so easy and so fun and I thought it was gonna be harmless!”

“Murder. You deserve murder. Like a weird, creative one that they make Netflix documentaries and podcasts about,” Lexa deadpanned. “And they can sell out theaters to talk about it live and make witty t-shirts and women in their thirties are cross stitching memes about it on weeknights and they pick some underdog actress to play you and she kills it.”

“That is so specific,” Anya sat back in her seat with wide eyes.

“I don’t know, Lex. Seems like we should be able to sort this out,” Lincoln, ever the optimist, sat forward. “How many people think you have this girlfriend?”

“More of them than I can manage effectively,” Lexa said flatly.

“And Aden does?” Lincoln winced.

Aden was a rookie salesman years ago. Lexa was his boss at the time, and his mentor. She shaped him into a top performer and he blew past his competition for promotions on attitude and will alone. He was so eager. His blood bled the Pantone 187 Red of the company logo. He ate, slept and breathed company culture. He wanted to be the CEO one day. Now under Anya’s management, he was part of the strategy team in the Boston office.

He met his fiancé in the company. She was a lovely young lady who worked in accounting and had her whole life and family back in Maine, where Lexa would be traveling in two weeks to attend his wedding as a total sham.

“Thankfully I don’t get put in the situation to talk to him much anymore, and there is seldom time for socializing when we’re briefly on the phone, but when he asks, I always lie,” Lexa put her face in her hands. “It’s making me sick.”

“You getting sick, Woods?” Octavia, Lincoln’s longtime girlfriend, recently turned brand new fiancé, asked as she walked up to the table with another pitcher and her own empty glass.

“Only with dread,” Lexa sighed and moved her work bag and blazer so she could slide over and make room for Octavia. “How was your work week?”

“Who cares? I’m getting married,” Octavia shrugged through a grin at Lincoln as she filled her glass. Lincoln leaned across the table to give her a quick kiss. 

Octavia worked nearby and she and Lincoln met years ago the old-fashioned way: A little drunk at their neighborhood bar with friends who pushed them into each other because they wouldn’t stop talking about thinking the other was cute to anyone who would listen. He proposed a few weeks ago and their fresh engagement and future wedding were front of mind for Octavia at all times.

“Congrats again, you two,” Lexa held her glass up and the four of them clinked pints. “I can’t wait to be part of it all.”

“Thank you, Lexa,” Octavia smiled at her. “How come you have your party pooper face on?”

“My what?!” Lexa yelped.

“That face you get when you’re determined to have a bad time,” Octavia replied. Anya pinched her lips shut and rested her hand over her mouth so she wouldn’t laugh. “You do it probably six out of the ten times I see you.”

“I’m not determined to have a bad time!” Lexa gasped. “I’m just fucking exhausted with work and this nightmare.” She gestured across the table at Anya.

“What did you do this time?” Octavia asked Anya with a rehearsed cadence.

“I may or may not have perpetuated the rumor that Lexa has a girlfriend to an unnecessary degree around the office,” Anya succumbed and held her hands up. “Now she has to go to Aden’s wedding and do a toast at his rehearsal and he is expecting her to show up with the fake plus one that doesn’t exist.”

“Oh my god, is that the kid that you molded from nothing and he idolizes you?” Octavia grimaced.

“Precisely the kid,” Lexa gave her a look.

“Yeah, you should be making your party pooper face. That sucks,” Octavia tried not to laugh but couldn’t finish her sentence.

“If I tell him the whole thing has been an Anya-Ruse, I think it will kill him that I’ve been lying to him,” Lexa rubbed her temples. “And his wedding is in two weeks and he asked me to make a toast at the rehearsal because of the impact I’ve made on his life. My work with him got him the promotion where he met his fiancé. He’s got me on some kind of pedestal that I absolutely do not belong on, and now I don’t know what to do.”

“You should just get someone he doesn’t know to come as your date,” Octavia shrugged.

“The wedding is in Maine at a small inn on private property with nothing to do for miles,” Lexa whined. “There will be no hiding.”

“I don’t know, Lex,” Anya pointed at Octavia. “She’s on to something.”

“I’m not bringing a fake date to this wedding. That is absolutely absurd,” Lexa sat up straighter to make her point.

“One of my best friends just moved back to town this week,” Octavia perked up. “Clarke. You guys remember Clarke?”

“I don’t know any Clarke,” Lexa grumbled, re-annoyed with the situation now that more of them were adding to it.

“Is she your friend from growing up? And she’s in New York?” Anya lit up as well.

“Yes! She’s amazing! She’s getting in late tonight. She would totally do it, too. She’s super fun and always down for anything. This is right up her alley!” Octavia pulled her phone out and started scrolling through Instagram.

“Lexa!” Anya tried to be encouraging. Lexa’s party pooper face turned up to eleven.

“Look! She’s super hot! She’s cool, she’s very social, she could totally pull it off.” Octavia turned her phone so that Lexa could see a photo of a blond in her thirties laughing and drinking a glass of red wine on a rooftop in a city somewhere.

It gave her pause because Octavia’s friend was, in fact, super hot. Her genuine smile climbed out of the photograph and into Lexa in some way she hadn’t planned for. This woman’s blond curls and coy smile made Lexa suddenly acutely aware of how long it had been since she’d been with a woman. 

It had been a very, very long time.

“Yes, fine. You’re correct. She’s hot, but NO,” Lexa tried again, waving a hand for emphasis. “I’m not doing this.”

“She’s down to earth, she’s so, so funny, she’s really smart, she owns her own business and is super successful,” Octavia scrolled through Clarke’s photos and Lexa hated herself for memorizing Clarke’s username in case she wanted to look at the photos again some time. “She loves to have a good time and she can talk to anyone about anything!”

“Lex, for what it’s worth,” Lincoln began apprehensively. Lexa’s glare made its way to him and he shied away from it. “Clarke actually is awesome.”

“I don’t care if she’s the most awesome woman alive! I am not taking someone I don’t know across the country to pretend she’s been my girlfriend in front of a bunch of people I work with!” Lexa snapped.

“Alright, alright, fine!” Octavia put her phone away. “We’ll drop it for now. On to more important things. You’re excited about our engagement party next weekend, right?” Octavia flashed her new diamond ring sarcastically. “I don’t know if you heard, but I’m getting married.”


	2. And My Hot, Single Friend Just Moved Back To Town!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Clarke is back and is willing to be the unconventional solution.

“What’s up, new neighbor!” Raven shouted as she and Octavia burst through Clarke’s apartment door carrying bottles of wine and a whole lot of gusto the following afternoon.

“I forgot that you JUST just got here,” Octavia avoided a precarious stack of boxes parked right in front of the doorway.

“Hi!” Clarke shouted as she emerged from behind another stack.

“You’re here!” Raven put the wine bottles down on the nearest flat surface and launched into Clarke’s arms. Octavia wrapped herself around them both. Clarke had been waiting a year for the hug that came with the sweetest relief of being safe with your best people.

“I’m so happy to finally be here!” Clarke’s joy was muffled by Raven’s shoulder, but she didn’t care. They all exhaled as they drew apart, then smashed together again for one more hug laced with excited giggles.

“New York is cool and all, but I’m glad you’re back in LA with us!” Octavia gave Clarke’s shoulder a squeeze.

“Me too! Cause I wanna see that friggin’ rock in person!” Clarke reached for Octavia’s hand, who was more than happy to oblige. 

“Put your sunglasses on. That thing’ll blind you,” Raven rolled her eyes.

“Damn! Look at you!” Clarke nodded in approval. Octavia mock scoffed and buffed her nails on her shirt.

“He did a great job. I have to hand it to him,” Octavia replied.

“Any chance you know where your corkscrew is, Babe?” Raven hesitantly looked around at all of the boxes and bags.

“Raven,” Clarke tsked. She reached for her handbag sitting on the floor by the door and shuffled through it for a wine key. “You know me better than that.”

“It’s so nice to have you back and see you and hug you and squeeze you!” Raven jumped in for one more hug. The laughter and hugs wrapped around Clarke like a warm, nostalgic blanket that she wanted to live in forever.

The three of them grew up in Southern California together. Life took them their separate ways for college and things had never been quite the same since. Clarke went to design school in New England, then came back to work in LA for a bit before work took her to New York for good. She fell in love in New York, got married there and built a life and a business there.

She also got cheated on there, and then she got divorced there. Then she packed everything up she had there, and now she was here again.

“Since I knew I was having company, I unpacked the crystal,” Clarke joked as she took three solo cups out of her bag and offered one to each of them. “Would you like a tour of the place?”

“Definitely!” Raven grinned.

“Well, from here, you can see the living room, the dining room, the guest room, the home office, the home gym and the bedroom,” Clarke spoke with a fake real estate agent voice as she gestured around the roomy, but still just one room, studio apartment. “The jacuzzi tub and sauna are down that hallway,” she joked, pointing at the single door in the apartment that lead to a cramped and poorly lit bathroom. “The kitchen has all the finest appliances and updated fixtures and is simply overflowing with style and flare,” she added, pointing to the small fridge and shrunken gas stove in the kitchen area. The faucet dripped, showing off.

Clarke could be silly and funny no matter the occasion. She loved having a good time, loved a joke and could always get her friends going. She’d had a tough go the last few years and they were happy to see that Clarke’s goofy humor was still intact.

Growing up, she was the party starter. She was the first person on a dancefloor, the first one to agree to late night skinny dipping and wouldn’t bat an eye at getting signed up for karaoke without her knowledge. Her graduation party was a blast and her wedding was an absolute blowout. Clarke Griffin spared nothing when it came to enjoying herself.

But she hadn’t genuinely enjoyed herself in a very long time. 

“Lovely, lovely, plenty of room for activities,” Octavia nodded.

“It’s totally fine for now. I rented some office space nearby for work and after that settles itself down I can look for something more permeant that I care about. This place is month-to-month, it was available, it was cheap, and it was in your neighborhood,” Clarke shrugged at Raven. “I need that more than I need a balcony right now,” she shot them both a warm look.

“You can just use mine,” Raven chuckled.

“Exactly!” Clarke worked the corkscrew on one of the bottles.

“How are you doing, though?” Raven asked more sincerely. “For real?”

“I’m okay,” Clarke sighed through the fake smile the two of them knew so well. She was forcing herself to believe it and sometimes it worked.

The embarrassment and the bulk of the confusing and defeating feelings of divorce had settled down. She was past the sad part. Despite feeling a little like she had lost some time and was starting over later than planned, she was feeling better. 

Or at least feeling at all.

“Liar,” Octavia half smiled.

“No, really. The drive was good. It was helpful,” Clarke replied. A genuine tone took over. “I don’t know why I thought I could stay in New York after all of that. I should have come back a year ago when it all went down, but I had so much work to wrap up and I was determined to see that through.”

Clarke owned her own design, branding and consulting firm. Her undergrad was in graphic design and she rounded it out with an MBA and a portfolio full of high-profile clients. She built it all herself. She strategically lightened the load for the few weeks she’d be getting settled and was looking forward to her first semblance of relaxing in years.

“Are you suing his ass?” Raven raised a brow.

“What would I sue him for? I made all the money,” Clarke shrugged and reached for one of the bottles Raven brought with her. 

“Damn right,” Octavia nodded.

“I’m sure that his several girlfriends in their early twenties have nothing I want,” Clarke rolled her eyes. “My head is clear, though. I feel great about work. I’m so happy to be here and help you with wedding stuff and see old friends and just, I don’t know,” Clarke shrugged as she poured them hefty glasses of sparkling rosé in plastic red cups. She took in the California sunshine through the one window she had and sighed a sigh that felt something like relief. “I’m excited to be myself again and not some version of myself that time and place made me.”

“Cheers to that,” Raven held her cup up.

“Here, here!” Octavia agreed.

They moved around the tight space opening boxes and going through Clarke’s stuff. Raven played old hits from high school on Clarke’s laptop while they laughed and caught up and rifled through old stories and memories. 

“How big is this party of yours going to be next weekend?” Clarke asked Octavia a while later as she broke down the last empty box of kitchen items. She hadn’t spotted her coffee pot yet and was starting to get annoyed.

“Pretty big. All of the usual suspects are coming that are in town. Bell’s flying down from Seattle. A bunch of family on both sides. Lincoln’s friends will all be there. Most of his work friends are coming,” Octavia replied as she took a stack of design books out of a box. “Which reminds me, have you and Lexa ever met?”

“Who’s Lexa?” Clarke asked. She rummaged around her memory for the faces and names of Lincoln’s friends she had met in passing over the years and tried to match them up.

“She’s been his friend for a hundred years, they work together. She and Anya basically come as a matching set. They’re going to be some of his groomsmen,” Octavia replied. “She’s slim and she’s a runner. She’s got long brown curly hair?”

“No, I don’t think I know any Lexa,” Clarke replied and kneeled next to a box of miscellaneous stuff that got packed late and was labeled ‘I taped this shut and forgot what was in it.’

“She’s one of Lincoln’s best friends. You and Anya know each other. The three of them are this little crew of work pals. They have been for like a decade,” Octavia carried on.

“Lincoln’s two best buddies are women and you’re cool with that?” Clarke raised a brow.

“Yes,” Octavia straightened up indignantly.

“Well, haven’t you grown right up?” Clarke joked and gave Octavia a playful jab.

“They’re both lesbians,” Raven jumped in without looking up from the bookshelf she was assembling.

“Of course they are,” Clarke laughed.

“Anyway!” Octavia said over Raven. “Anya has been pulling some dumb prank on Lexa for years at their office telling people about Lexa having a girlfriend that she most certainly does not have.”

“Glad to see that even fortune one thousand executives know how to have fun at work,” Clarke chuckled.

“Lexa has to go to an office wedding in two weeks and they are expecting her to show up with a girlfriend and she doesn’t have one,” Octavia paused before letting out the rest. “And I suggested she take you with her and pretend you’re the girlfriend.”

“I’d go to a wedding as a fake date,” Clarke shrugged. Octavia and Raven glanced at each other quickly. This was the Clarke they knew well. “Sounds like fun.”

“It’s in Maine,” Octavia pressed.

“Ha!” Clarke triumphantly pulled her coffee maker out of the box. “I mean, that seems a little excessive, but I’d still totally do it.”

“You would not,” Raven gave her a look over her shoulder.

“Sure, I would. After this whole thing I could use a vacation,” Clarke sat back on her knees and tucked some sweaty, wayward blond curls behind her ears. “Is she cool?”

“She’s actually pretty cool,” Raven assured her.

“What does she look like?” Clarke popped the coffee maker on the counter and admired her progress.

“She’s hot!” Octavia scrambled past the boxes between her and Clarke with vigor. She tripped and almost lost track of her phone. “Way hotter than that girlfriend you had in college and definitely hotter than that girl you were seeing when we first visited you in New York that we all pretended to like.”

“Very casual, O,” Raven shook her head as she added another shelf to Clarke’s bookcase. She heard about the shenanigans going on with the Grounder execs on the way over and thought the whole thing was too silly even for Clarke.

“I knew you never liked her. Subtly was never your strong suit,” Clarke chuckled before taking a look at Octavia’s phone. “Oh, wow,” Clarke nodded in approval as Octavia scrolled through Lexa’s photos. “Hunh.”

“What?” Octavia grinned.

“You’re not kidding. Very hot,” Clarke agreed before digging back into the box.

“And she’s really smart. She’s polite, she’s a big shot at her job, she works super hard like you, and she has nice friends,” Octavia scrolled past Lexa and Anya at the finish line of road races. Lexa and Anya and Lincoln at a bar where the women wore suits and Lincoln wore his work shirt. Lexa scowling in her office on the phone holding a hand up to block the photo and failing with a witty caption from Anya below it. Lexa on a boat somewhere laughing in a sea breeze.

“Why is she single?” Clarke raised a skeptical brow. “Is she weird?”

“She’s kinda quiet,” Raven shrugged. “Not necessarily shy or uptight, but kind of? Reserved is a better word, maybe.”

“Work, probably. She works all the time,” Octavia kept scrolling and turning her phone to Clarke at particularly accurate or flattering photos. “She was coming off a broken engagement when Lincoln and I first met. It was a touchy subject and I never really followed up.”

“That was five years ago,” Clarke said as she kept her interest in check at a photo of Lexa with Anya in a headlock at an outdoor bar somewhere. Lexa had a tank top on. The shape of her shoulders lingered in the back of Clarke’s mind after Octavia scrolled on.

Clarke hadn’t been with anyone since her divorce over a year ago. Prior to settling down, Clarke had a reputation for getting around. The surprise betrayal made her examine herself and figure out what the parts were that she played in it. She knew she needed to be alone to do the necessary work. She needed to focus.

Looking at Lexa’s athletic frame and camera-ready smile made her have a passing thought about sex for the first time in a very long time.

“Clarke, I live a very busy life. I can’t keep up with everyone’s pasts,” Octavia clicked the phone off and Clarke was disappointed that the slideshow was over.

“If she’s that hot, she’s legitimately single, and she needs an innocent, genuinely fake date,” Clarke polished off the last of her Solo cup of wine. “I’m totally in.”

“Ohmygod YES!” Octavia yelped and threw her hands in the air. 

“Sounds like Single Clarke is back,” Raven laughed.

“Might as well, right?” Clarke shrugged and reached for the last bottle of wine. It was empty and she frowned. “So, friends, I have absolutely no food and we drank all the wine. I’m hungry and I would like to be kinda drunk and I’m just not quite there,” Clarke said wistfully.

“Big same,” Raven dropped the last shelf in place on the bookcase.

“Lincoln’s at the bar right now,” Octavia glanced at her phone. “It’s not far from here. We can walk. I’m sure he’ll be really excited to see you!”

“What kind of place is this?” Clarke asked, glancing down at her ripped jeans and white t shirt that now had a pink wine stain near the hem. “Should I change? It’s gonna take me a minute to find real clothes.”

“Oh, no,” Raven shook her head. She looked dressed for the gym. “It’s a dive. We’re getting pitchers of cheap beer and chicken fingers that come in a disposable basket. We can go straight there.”

“Lead the way, neighbor!” Clarke just liked saying it. She liked being home. She liked being between her favorite friends. She liked that she could feel her slate being wiped clean.

“I’m so happy you’re here,” Raven said with a warm smile. She slung her arm around Clarke as they walked out the door.


	3. And She Said She Would Do It!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Clarke and Lexa meet and come to an agreement.

“You guys weren’t kidding about this place, huh?” Clarke asked as they walked into the bar. Everyone was casual and there was a certain sensation to it where providing ambiance lived on the back burner and the results of neglect brought a specific brand of unintended ambiance to the forefront. It was dirty in a way that worked for its aesthetic. The smell of too many cleaning products hung in the air with stale popcorn and sour beer. “I didn’t know anything like this still existed in LA. At least not in a way that wasn’t planned or ironic.”

“I don’t like to question miracles when I see them,” Octavia said as she waved to Lincoln sitting at the bar. He sat between two women who turned over their shoulders when he waved with glee at his fiancé.

“Well, isn’t this a pleasant surprise!” Anya grinned. She and Lexa both had running clothes on and the fresh sweat of activity. 

“You didn’t say your girl gang was here,” Octavia leaned in for a kiss.

“They just showed up!” Lincoln pointed to their full beers. He hopped off his bar stool and offered it to Raven who obliged.

“Clarke! Welcome home!” Anya smiled at Clarke. Lexa perked up at the mention of Clarke’s name and paid a touch of extra attention to the way Clarke’s careless white t shirt clung and hung in all the right places. “I’ll hug you in twenty when this sweat dries!”

“I’m not scared. I’m covered in wine stains. Get over here,” Clarke gave Anya a friendly hug.

“I always liked you,” Anya chuckled. “Clarke, this is Lexa, my best friend in the whole wide world,” Anya gestured at Lexa who sat coolly with a polite half smile on. She had her hair pulled back in a tight bun and wore a damp tank top featuring the shoulders and arms Clarke had been previously admiring. Her neck and chest were still sweaty.

Clarke thought about sex again.

“Hi,” Lexa held her hand out to shake. “Lexa,” she brightened the tiniest bit when Clarke took her hand.

“Clarke,” Clarke replied with a softness that surprised herself.

A fraction of pause teeming with electricity lingered between them.

She was even hotter in person.

“Lexa, Clarke said she’d be your girlfriend,” Octavia blurted out. Clarke let out a laugh. Anya whipped her head around to Octavia with a wide, openmouthed smile.

“Jesus Christ,” Lexa muttered and looked away. “I’m really sorry for whatever she has said to you. I had nothing to do with it. I am not soliciting a girlfriend.” She held her hands up in defense. “I am also not soliciting a fake girlfriend to go to this stupid wedding with me.”

“Too bad,” Clarke shrugged and took the beer Lincoln offered to her with a grin.

“I’m sorry?” Lexa shook her head.

“That’s too bad,” Clarke repeated and took a big gulp from her beer. “I totally would’ve gone with you. I fuckin’ love weddings.”

“Holy shit, it’s happening,” Anya whispered and clutched Octavia by the forearm.

“But you don’t even know me,” Lexa squinted at Clarke, trying to figure her out.

“These two said you’re cool,” Clarke shrugged and pointed at Raven and Octavia. “And I’ve got nothing else going on.”

“Are you serious right now?” Anya’s beer lingered halfway to her mouth, completely forgotten in the excitement of the plan coming together.

“Sure,” Clarke’s grin grew sheepish when she looked Lexa’s way. “Why not?”

“But,” Lexa tried.

Nothing came.

“She said she’d do it!” Anya threw her hands in the air.

“When’s the wedding?” Clarke asked innocently.

“Two weeks,” Lexa pinched the bridge of her nose.

“It’s in Maine,” Anya picked up for her. “She’s already got a room lined up and a rental car and the whole deal! You just need to get a flight!”

“I’ll buy the flight,” Lexa jumped in automatically, her good manners getting the best of her.

“Oh, m’lady, what a treat,” Clarke joked and grinned at Lexa.

“I mean,” Lexa clenched her eyes shut and tried to reset. She enjoyed Clarke’s laugh and Clarke’s jokes too much. She liked her dirty jeans and she liked that Clarke’s toenails were painted hot pink and that her smile felt like sneaking into a private pool at night or driving too fast for fun. The good kind of dangerous. Like she probably shouldn’t do it, but most likely it would be fine, and it would be one thousand percent worth it.

She hadn’t felt that sensation in ages.

“No! No. This is out of control,” Lexa huffed.

Clarke was beautiful. Maybe too beautiful to pull this thing off. Too pretty to be a fake girlfriend with those teeth and that smile and those curves. And she was comfortable with nonsense and already making jokes…

“Clarke,” Lexa turned to Clarke. The blue eyes that gave her their full attention made the bottom of her stomach slowly roll over. She had to shut this whole thing right down. “You seem really great, and it is absolutely nothing personal and one hundred percent me. I can’t do this.”

“Then why don’t you call the little man up and tell him you’re full of shit?” Anya raised a brow.

“Little man? Who the hell is getting married?” Clarke flicked quizzical eyes around the circle.

“Do you want to come sit down with me so I can please straighten this all out with you?” Lexa sighed, her eyes earnest and pleading. “Without any help from these assholes who are making this incredibly awkward experience ten times worse than it needs to be?” She gestured at the rest of them who were holding their breath.

“Sure,” Clarke replied with a sincere smile. The group exhaled behind her.

“After you,” Lexa gestured towards an empty booth. “First, I will start by apologizing for everyone and everything.”

“You really don’t need to,” Clarke assured her and dropped into the booth across from Lexa. They had nothing left to look at but each other, and neither was disappointed. “I know two of them very well, and I am not an ounce surprised. They go nuts for silly stuff like this. I’m the one who said I’d go, remember,” Clarke stretched her neck. She was sore from the move and only partially aware that she was showing off her chest in the process.

“Right,” Lexa gripped her beer glass with both hands. She didn’t know what she was supposed to do with them. She felt so uncomfortable putting this person she just met in this position, but at the same time, she wanted to hear Clarke’s laugh again.

“So. In your own words, from the beginning,” Clarke said slowly. “Who’s getting married?”

“This really nice kid, Aden. He works with us, but he’s on the east coast. Anya is his boss. I used to be his manager and I worked with him to turn his whole career around. I mentored the hell out of him a while ago and he holds me in high regard,” Lexa answered. 

“Sounds okay,” Clarke nodded. “So why do you need a date?”

“Anya started this joke that I had a girlfriend to get one of our peers who was relentlessly asking for dates to leave me alone two years ago. It has since spiraled wildly out of control, as most things with Anya do, and there will be a lot of people from work at this wedding who all think I have a girlfriend,” Lexa sighed. “These clowns decided I should bring a fake girlfriend,” she nodded up at the bar at their friends and took a deep breath before finishing. “And they decided it should be you.”

“Well, they’re not wrong,” Clarke grinned after a big sip of her drink. “I’m perfect for this.”

“I don’t,” Lexa paused. She wasn’t even sure what she was trying to say.

It couldn’t be this easy.

“And you’d be comfortable with all of it?” Lexa winced.

Nothing about it was going to be easy if Clarke was going to keep flashing that smile and laughing that laugh and wearing clothes that showed off that rack.

It was a t shirt. A basic, thin, nothing special white t shirt, and all Lexa wanted to do was take it off of her.

“Lexa,” Clarke began. She looked Lexa hard in the eye and it sent a jolt down to Lexa’s toes. “We’re two adults making an agreement. I’m simply a new friend of yours doing you a favor.”

“It’s kind of a weird favor,” Lexa wrinkled her nose.

“That’s kind of a judgy tone since you’re the one asking,” Clarke cocked a brow at her.

“I’m sorry,” Lexa sighed and rubbed some of the endless tension out of her forehead. “This is just so awkward.”

“It doesn’t have to be,” Clarke shrugged. “They think we’ve been together for a couple of years, right? We don’t have to be all over each other to sell it.”

“Yes, a little over two years,” Lexa replied. She was thankful that Clarke had taken the lead on the conversation. She kind of liked it.

“What’s my name?” Clarke asked thoughtfully. Lexa’s clueless expression caused an extra smile Clarke didn’t realize she was carrying around to bloom. “What do they think your girlfriend’s name is?” Clarke clarified.

“I’m not actually sure if she has one. I mean, if you have one,” Lexa rested her elbows on the table and looked down into her beer as all of the rumors and jokes and annoying memories zipped by. “No. She doesn’t have one.”

“That’s a relief. We can just use mine,” Clarke grinned. It softened Lexa. “What’s my job?”

“I’m pretty sure Anya’s rumors have you as some kind of vague marketing job who travels a lot to explain away why you haven’t been around,” Lexa said. “My excuse is that you’re ‘traveling for work’ all the time.”

“Easy enough. Most of my work is in New York right now, and it is very much marketing related, so that’s only kind of a lie and will be easy enough to keep track of,” Clarke nodded. “How did we meet?”

“I don’t think she’s been that elaborate,” Lexa almost allowed herself to laugh, but she wasn’t one hundred percent sure it was true.

“Right, but we’re gonna be at a destination wedding with how many people at it?” Clarke asked.

“I think it’s a big one,” Lexa sighed. “Hundreds of people.”

“And you’re the groom’s boss?” Clarke pulled her phone out.

“Anya is. I used to be,” Lexa scowled.

“Then we’re gonna need to get our facts right. Everyone’s going to want to know absolutely every detail about us. When someone important who looks like you shows up with someone who looks like me? Come on! Destination weddings exist outside of the realm of time and space. People feel like they are entitled to knowing every part of your life that brought you to this same joyous occasion!” Clarke grew more excited by the moment.

“What do you mean someone who looks like me and someone who looks like you?” Lexa puzzled.

“Lexa,” Clarke scoffed. Lexa remained nonplussed. “We’re both really attractive.”

Lexa let out a loud, surprised, genuine laugh. It was so authentic and adorable. Clarke crossed her legs a little tighter.

“Oh my god,” Lexa put her face back in her hands.

“Come on! Think about it. This girl’s family is from Maine and two corporate babes fly in from Los Angeles together? People are gonna want to know exactly who we are. You haven’t seen me in a dress yet, but buckle up,” Clarke scoffed.

“I’m so annoyed that you’re completely right,” Lexa sighed. Her lips turned down in the tiniest pout that caused Clarke to take her tone down a notch.

“I’m just saying, if we’re gonna do this thing, then let’s really do this thing,” Clarke warmed. “When do we leave?” Clarke brought up her calendar.

“A week from Thursday,” Lexa gave in. She pulled her phone out as well. “I’ll get your plane ticket. Let’s exchange info.” She handed her phone with a blank contact screen to Clarke.

“You’ve been my girlfriend for two years and you still don’t know my middle name?” Clarke raised a brow. Lexa’s facial expression was one Clarke would remember forever. Her eyebrows were so confused with which emotion they were keeping up with that they looked drunk. “Just practicing,” Clarke winked.

“You’re a little too good at that,” Lexa side eyed her.

“Lucky for you, then,” Clarke grinned. “Now, my friends are going to kill me if I don’t get over there because they’ve been waiting literally years for me to return, but I think you and I should get together some night this week and get our stories straight.”

“I can do Wednesday night,” Lexa replied automatically. She couldn’t believe she was doing this. Agreeing to the ridiculous charade, lying to so many people, but the shape of Clarke’s smile was easing the edges on the crapshow unfolding. Something about Clarke made this hairbrained idea seem like the best one.

“Great. Pick me up at seven?” Clarke asked.

“I guess that’s what it’s going to have to be,” Lexa sighed. 

“We’re on a limited clock here, so we should get started on our fake affection,” Clarke stood up and held her hand out to Lexa who begrudgingly took it. Clarke yanked Lexa up and wrapped her arm around her waist.

Lexa used everything she had not to flinch at her touch.

“So?” Octavia asked tentatively as Clarke and Lexa walked back over.

“We’re doing it,” Clarke smirked.

“No. Fucking. Way.” Anya’s jaw dropped.

“I’d love for you all to meet my girlfriend, Clarke,” Lexa sighed, still not convinced this was the right move, but much like the lie that got her here, she found it easier to just go along with it. 

“How did you get her to do it?” Anya was still gaping at Clarke. “What sorcery is this?!”

“Just a new friend doing another new friend a favor. No sorcery. By the way, I need all the details from you on who I am, because this one has no idea,” Clarke playfully rolled her eyes and gave Lexa a little squeeze. She stiffened immediately.

“Looks like you’re gonna need to work on that one, Buddy,” Anya smirked at Lexa.

“Get wrecked,” Lexa grumbled.

“Do I have any hobbies that I should know about?” Clarke asked.

“You go running with us,” Anya replied.

“I absolutely do no such thing, and when you get back to work on Monday, you start lying about my recently healed knee injury immediately,” Clarke said quickly. They all laughed.

“At the holiday party when I was kind of drunk, I know I made up some weird ones,” Anya winced. “But I wrote them down to keep track, because my job gets really tedious and this is a fun little escape for me.”

“We’re going on a date on Wednesday to get all of our information sorted, so if you could email my dossier to my woman, that’d be great,” Clarke joked.

“Damn, maybe you guys should go on a real date,” Anya looked them both up and down. Lexa had an arm draped around Clarke’s shoulder and Clarke had hers around Lexa’s waist. “I like this sweaty-messy-weekend aesthetic you’re both cultivating. Looks very authentic. Like you’ve been doing it for years.”

“Shut up, don’t make it weird,” Clarke gave Anya a playful shove. Lexa exhaled with relief. “Now, how the hell have you been? I don’t even remember the last time we saw each other.”


	4. And They Went On A Fake Date!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Clarke and Lexa have dinner and drinks to discuss the terms of their arrangement.

Clarke woke up hungover on Sunday in her new apartment slightly confused as to where she was. 

She also woke up to a few missed texts from Lexa.

They all had a great time and stayed at the bar too late. What was supposed to be a quick destination run for Lexa and Anya with a one beer reward turned into way too many laughs. Clarke, Raven and Octavia busted out a choreographed dance from a junior high talent show that they could only remember half of, and Lincoln proved that he could do pushups with Octavia sitting on his back. They monopolized the jukebox and had more fun than any of them had had in too long.

Clarke’s attention was dominated by Raven and Octavia, and for good reason. She managed to catch a few laughs with Lexa and learned that she was perpetually training for various races with Anya, was an early bird, was a corporate executive, and was way too shy and insecure for how lovely she was.

Clarke sat up and rubbed her eyes before checking the messages. They were mostly administrative and she wasn’t surprised. Her flight itinerary, details for their get together later in the week, one too many sentences that had both ‘thank you’ and ‘I’m sorry’ in them.

Lexa needed to relax, and she was a little reserved, as advertised.

She was pretty cute, though.

‘Despite all of the less conventional parts, it has been really nice meeting you. Welcome back to the west coast. Let me know if you need anything as you get settled,’ was the last text of the bunch.

“Well, Coffee Pot,” Clarke said aloud as she dragged herself off of the mattress on the floor towards the counter. “She sure is polite.”

What began as innocent questions about the venue and what type of clothes Clarke should pack soon evolved into friendly conversation. Constant friendly conversation. Around the clock friendly conversation. Clarke unpacked her apartment over the next few days, actually bought some groceries and tried to establish some sort of routine.

All throughout, she and Lexa shot the breeze via text. It was so constant and so natural that she didn’t notice that she started to look forward to each and every reply. Lexa sent her a selfie while she was out on a jog.

Clarke ignored the warning sign of a huge, involuntary smile when she laid eyes on Lexa’s sweaty grin.

Lexa went back to work Monday morning and facepalmed at the email from Anya with a list over a page long of all of the character traits she had given Lexa’s imaginary better half, and to whom. As her phone lit up over and over with work, Lexa found herself increasingly disappointed when the notifications weren’t from Clarke.

“Hey,” Anya let herself into Lexa’s office at the end of the day on Wednesday.

“I regret giving you that key almost every time you use it,” Lexa flicked her eyes up from her computer. 

“Nice to see you too, Best Friend,” Anya scowled, invited herself in, then dropped into one of the chairs across from Lexa.

“Please, come right in. I’m not busy at all,” Lexa sighed. She was so, so busy, and she needed to get going to pick Clarke up in an hour for their organizational date.

“I just came in here to tell you that you look nice today. This was my first chance, but I saw you a few times going into the conference room and I wanted to pop in. I like what you’ve got going on with your hair and I haven’t seen you wear that suit in a while,” Anya sighed. Lexa looked over the top of her computer screen with pause.

“That cannot be all you came in here for,” Lexa said flatly after a few beats of consideration.

“I’m serious!” Anya yelped. “You look good today. That’s it,” she sighed and lifted herself out of the chair. “I know you’re mad about the whole thing, but outside of that, I still love you and I still want to hang out. You wanna grab a drink when you’re done?” Anya asked genuinely.

“Can’t,” Lexa replied as she sorted some file folders on her desk.

“You going to the gym?” Anya glanced absentmindedly at Lexa’s wall of awards and company achievements. There was a picture of the two of them from their very first quarter. They tied for top sales and set the tone for the rest of their careers.

“I’m, ah,” Lexa paused, not sure if she had the mental fortitude to open this can of worms with Anya an hour after business had closed for the day. “I’m having dinner with Clarke,” she finished after a deep breath. Anya turned around slowly with a grin she had concerns she might choke on as she swallowed it for Lexa’s benefit.

“Yeah?” was all Anya could get out without exploding.

“We’ve been texting a lot,” Lexa leaned back in her chair. Anya just waited for Lexa to go on. “I think this might actually work.”

“That’s great!” Anya exhaled with relief. 

“I guess we’ll see,” Lexa rubbed her eyes. She had been staring at screens all day trying to get everything in order. 

“Is that,” Anya tried to slow herself down, tried to stop the question from coming out, but she just couldn’t. “Is that why you look so good today?”

“What?” Lexa furrowed her brow. “No! I just picked up all my dry-cleaning last night and this suit was on top.”

It was a lie.

“Nice,” Anya tried.

“I’m just having a good curl day,” Lexa shrugged to explain away having her hair down and full and suspiciously perfect. In August. In Los Angeles.

“Sure,” Anya replied with a polite nod.

“What do you mean, sure?” Lexa eyed her.

“You are definitely having a good curl day that I can tell by your product is completely natural, and I’m glad it coincided with your suit that makes you look tall and makes your ass look good coincidentally being the suit on top today when you have dinner plans with a hot babe that you’re taking on a fake romantic weekend,” Anya bit the insides of her cheeks and found a very interesting seam in the carpet to fixate on. 

“I hate you,” Lexa grumbled. She stuffed her laptop into her bag and grabbed a few things off of her desk as she stood up.

“Lex,” Anya softened. “Come on. Are you okay?”

“Of course I’m not okay!” Lexa snapped. One of the interns walked by her door and glanced in at the two execs. Anya rolled her eyes at him and closed the door.

“Other than wanting to throttle me, which, totally understandable and maybe we can unpack that some other time, are you okay?” Anya asked, her tone stripped of her usual bullshit and left honesty laid bare.

“I don’t know,” Lexa sighed. 

She was just making a new friend. A new friend that she was going to take on a romantic vacation and pretend she was in love with just to save face at work. A new friend who was coincidentally extremely attractive and pleasant and witty and was a really sexy dancer even if the song was silly and wore jeans like they were designed for her and texted with proper punctuation and well timed sarcasm and had a laugh that did something to Lexa’s insides that she didn’t fully understand and didn’t want to begin to process.

Not now, anyway.

“I can’t remember the last time I went on a date,” Lexa finally admitted.

“So? You’re not going on a date,” Anya treaded carefully. If not handled with precision, Lexa would clam right back up and burry her feelings and never bring it up again.

“Right,” Lexa sighed.

“Unless,” Anya glanced up skeptically.

“It’s a fake date,” Lexa clarified immediately. “Totally fake. This is a business meeting so we can plan our whole entire charade.”

“Lexa,” Anya tried. “Are you sure you’re going to be able to do this?”

“I don’t have a choice. I already bought her ticket. She seems excited about it. I don’t know what else I would even do,” Lexa sighed. Her phone buzzed on her desk and this time it was Clarke. Her heart sped up and she willed her face not to express the excitement she felt. “We’ve been texting a lot. Like all day, all night, a lot.”

“Dude,” Anya gained sincerity with each remark. “I think you like her.”

“I do not!” Lexa snapped. “I mean, yes, of course I like her, but not like that. She’s cool, she’s funny, she’s smart, she’s all the things she was advertised to be, and I’m sure we’ll be swell friends.”

“I’ve been saying all along that you need to get out more,” Anya shrugged. “You need to stop hanging out with me because I get you into shit like this,” Anya offered up a smile of surrender.

“I’m going to be late,” was all Lexa had to extend in return.

“Call me tonight?” Anya asked with an earnest smile. It tugged at Lexa’s stubborn heart and she mustered up half of one back.

“Maybe,” Lexa scowled.

She waited in the car outside of Clarke’s building. Lexa recognized that it was Raven’s neighborhood. They all ended up at Raven’s on occasion when fate brought them all to the bar. After sending a message to Clarke that she was downstairs, Lexa got lost in the slew of unanswered emails from the day. Clarke knocked on the passenger side window and it startled her more than it should have.

“Hi!” Clarke smiled as she settled into the passenger’s seat. Lexa could smell her. Her hair products, her perfume, something else that all blended perfectly together. Clarke was dressed casually in tight black jeans and a flowy black tank top, and it was working overtime for her. Clarke’s golden curls were down and in full force and also denying the summer heat. “Don’t you look nice!” Clarke tapped Lexa on the arm.

“Thank you,” Lexa replied with a modest smile. “I came straight from work,” she added as she pulled back into traffic.

“How was your day?” Clarke asked. It sounded genuine, but Lexa wasn’t sure if she was being Real Clarke The New Friend or Fake Clarke The Girlfriend. Clarke was a little too good at living in the gray area in between, and Lexa was not getting any better at deciphering which parts were sarcasm.

“Oh, it was just fine. I have this for you,” Lexa reached into her jacket as she drove and handed Clarke a folded sheet of paper. “Figured we might as well start quizzing each other.”

“Good lord, Anya should be a writer,” Clarke laughed as she scanned the page. “It’s kind of funny, but a lot of this is true.”

“I shudder to ask,” Lexa had glanced it over but found the whole thing so overwhelming she waited for Clarke to really dig into it.

“I like wine. You and I go out to eat a lot, which I like to do, so that’s easy enough. I travel for work all the time. This is oddly specific, but it’s true and I assume has a story behind it but I ‘don’t have fucking time to watch Game of Thrones either’?” Clarke read with a little laugh. 

“She needs to be examined,” Lexa let out a deep breath. “She wants to talk to me about that show and I just do not have time for it.”

“Real me and fake me don’t have time for it either. Maybe we should stop going out so much and spend some time at home,” Clarke joked. Lexa didn’t like how much she loved the little raised brow that came with it. “Do you cook, or do I cook?”

“I don’t really have the time for anything special other than feeding myself to live,” Lexa shrugged. “I’ve never been much of a cook. I like to eat, though.”

“Me too. Probably why we go out so much,” Clarke chuckled.

The restaurant was crowded when they arrived, so they opted for two seats on the corner of the bar to be able to hear each other. After a glass of wine, Lexa loosened up and they laughed through Anya’s list of character traits. They were all specific, but all manageable. 

“Would you like another?” The bartender pointed to Lexa’s empty wineglass while Clarke was in the restroom.

“Yes, please,” Lexa nodded.

“Does your girlfriend want the same?” the bartender gestured at Clarke’s vacant seat.

“Oh,” Lexa furrowed her brow. “She’s not-“

“She’s not looking to be difficult and won’t have you make two trips. Yes please,” Clarke interrupted as she returned.

“Right,” Lexa sighed.

“So,” Clarke ran her fingers through her hair and settled back on her bar stool. “I should probably get to know all of your character traits, too.”

“I suppose you should,” Lexa chuckled. “Ask away.”

“Brothers and sisters?” Clarke asked. She turned on her stool to get a little closer to Lexa.

“None,” Lexa replied. “You?”

“Also none,” Clarke nodded. “Easy to remember! Parents?”

“My mom passed when I was young,” Lexa said with rehearsed practice.

“I’m really sorry to hear that,” Clarke replied with honest sympathy. “Are you close with your dad?”

“Not remotely,” Lexa shrugged. “He left before she died. He had multiple girlfriends on the side. He always was a real sleazebag,” Lexa sipped her wine. “We never really got along. He tried to be involved in my life when I was younger, but I haven’t seen him in person in a few years. He calls me every once in a while, and every time I see him, it ends poorly. I can’t even remember the last time I talked to him. I think he lives in Vermont, but I don’t know for sure.”

“So, my relationship with your family is going to be easy to keep track of,” Clarke used a sad smile to break the tension. 

“Silver lining, I suppose,” Lexa chuckled. She liked that Clarke didn’t baby her over it. She had stopped babying herself a long time ago. “What brought you back to the west coast?” Lexa asked after a beat of silence.

“A lot of things,” Clarke replied thoughtfully. “I got divorced a year ago.”

“Clarke, I’m sorry, I didn’t know,” Lexa let herself relax. While her feelings about Clarke were confusing, there was something wonderful in Clarke’s no nonsense, all honesty attitude. “Any children?”

“Well, technically he was an adult man, but he sure acted like a fucking child,” Clarke rolled her eyes. Lexa burst into a surprised laugh that she was using too often around Clarke.

“I’m laughing at the delivery and not the content,” Lexa assured her.

“I know, I know,” Clarke laughed into her wine. “We officially divorced a year ago, but it was a long separation leading up to it, and frankly a shitty marriage leading up to that. He was also a man with some girlfriends on the side, so I feel your pain there.”

“That’s really terrible,” Lexa said earnestly. “I’m so sorry. It’s the worst.” 

“And no. No children,” Clarke said with a sad smile. “It took me a while to realize that none of it was my fault and had everything to do with him. I still felt like a real idiot, though.”

“You shouldn’t,” Lexa said quickly. 

“I don’t anymore,” Clarke shrugged. “But it was a real mind fuck for a while there. I hated giving that asshole the satisfaction that I was so upset over it all.”

“He’s the idiot for letting you go,” Lexa said before she had time to edit herself. Clarke tried to hide her shy blush with a sip of her drink while Lexa tried to act like she didn’t like it.

“That must be the charm you won me over with,” Clarke smirked.

“Is it still working after all these years?” Lexa raised a brow. A moment passed between them that felt right and wrong at the same time.

“You’re gonna have to be careful with that shit,” Clarke said with a touch of purpose after the brief electricity died down. “We’re gonna have to promise not to fall in love with each other. This is strictly a favor between friends.”

“That won’t be a problem for you. You’re not,” Lexa began, then cut herself off on Clarke’s look.

“I’m not what?” Clarke asked coyly. She enjoyed Lexa’s squirms and flushed cheeks way too much.

“Well, if you have an ex-husband, then you must be,” Lexa tried again.

“Single,” Clarke said slowly. “Which, according to the fine print in this deal, you are as well?”

“Right,” Lexa scratched her forehead. “Sorry.”

“Then we need to edit the deal,” Clarke sat up straight and cleared her throat. She raised her wine glass. “I, Clarke Griffin, solemnly swear that I will not fall in love with you for real.”

“I, Lexa Woods,” Lexa tried not to laugh as she raised her glass. “Solemnly swear that I will not fall in love with you for real either.”

“Deal,” Clarke clinked her glass against Lexa’s and they both drank.

They held their eye contact a fraction of a second too long before Clarke glanced at the page of notes on the bar between them to end the moment.

“Say, did Anya clean up the facts around that bit about me being a running partner of yours?” Clarke asked to break the tension. Lexa was thankful for the quick shift. “Cause I’m not getting up early and going for any hangover jogs while I’m on vacation just to make this look authentic.”

“Work and a light sprain currently have you off of your training schedule,” Lexa chuckled, then downed the rest of her wine.


	5. And Their Hands Bumped When They Reached For The Same Thing!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It’s hard to pretend when you're getting along so well.

“Okay! Okay, come on, give me a chance!” Clarke giggled uncontrollably two hours later. They shared a bunch of food and had moved from glasses of wine to cheap beers after dinner. “Alright. For the gold medal in fake girlfriending,” Clarke paused.

“C’mon, Honey, you got it,” Lexa joked as she held the paper from Anya, a combination of fact and fiction now crinkled and written all over, out of Clarke’s view. Clarke closed her eyes and clenched her teeth in thought.

“We’ve been together for over two years and we met through Lincoln and Octavia at her birthday party. I didn’t like you at first and you had to chase me, because I didn’t realize you were trying to hit on me. I hog the blankets, you do the grocery shopping, I do the laundry and you vacuum. My job is my real job, I’m allergic to shrimp for some reason, you take the trash out and apparently we’re super sweet to each other and it makes Anya want to throw up,” Clarke rattled off.

“You’re killing it, Babe,” Lexa encouraged her. They started peppering in pet names uncomfortably at the start of the night, and they morphed into a well-received joke and familiar nicknames as the quizzing progressed.

“I feel like there’s more, though!” Clarke held up two fists and shook them.

“I think maybe we’ve had enough for tonight,” Lexa folded the paper and handed it to Clarke. “You’ve earned a break.”

“Thank god she didn’t get too weird and claim that I’m bilingual or something,” Clarke polished off her beer and tucked the paper into her handbag. “I don’t think I could’ve learned French by next week. You’ve got to hand it to her. She came up with a pretty normal person for you.”

“She’s been dying for me to date someone she likes,” Lexa rolled her eyes. “Looks like she just made one up.”

“What kind of girls do you usually date?” Clarke asked. 

“None, really,” Lexa shrugged and finished off her beer. The bartender glanced their way and Clarke shook her head as she motioned for the check.

“That’s so bizarre,” Clarke’s giggles were still dying down. “Why don’t you date? You’re a delight to spend time with. This date has been a blast!”

“I don’t know,” Lexa shrugged, refusing to get hung up on Clarke calling their nondate a date. “I was engaged a long time ago. It didn’t work out. I haven’t really been the same since.”

“Why not?” Clarke asked. Her eyelids drooped a little as her smiles widened from the drinks and the laughs.

“A lot of reasons,” Lexa glanced away. “Pretty much boiled down to she demanded I be someone I’m not, and I,” she trailed off. Clarke patiently waited for her to finish. “I just couldn’t do it.”

“I hate that,” Clarke wrinkled her nose. “I’m sorry, that really sucks.”

“Yeah, probably for the best,” Lexa pushed her empty beer bottle around in a circle on the bar top to avoid looking at Clarke. “I’ve pretty much kept to myself and focused on work and my training since. This is the first date I’ve been on in a very long time.”

“Me too,” Clarke said warmly. Clarke’s eyelashes and the smell of her hair and the way her ass looked in her black jeans and the way they both endlessly laughed became a heady cocktail that had Lexa too confused. 

It wasn’t a date. It was a friend date. A planning meeting. They were getting to know each other so they could pull off a major con.

It wasn’t a date.

“She treated me very poorly. Ultimately, I realized we were wrong for each other and I called it off,” Lexa added thoughtfully. “In hindsight, she was a total bitch.”

“Do you complain around the office about what a total bitch your girlfriend is now?” Clarke playfully tapped her toe into Lexa’s shin.

“I need to set an example for my droves of subordinates in presenting only the best manners and respect that I can,” Lexa laughed. “Absolutely no disrespecting women in my office.”

“Aren’t you the gentlewoman,” Clarke’s gaze lingered on Lexa’s as she handed her card to the bartender. Lexa was so caught up in swimming against the current of emotions coursing through her body when she made eye contact with Clarke that she missed the opportunity to try to pay.

“Oh, Clarke, wait,” Lexa tried to stop the transaction. The bartender hesitated.

“I got it,” Clarke waved a hand. “But I would really love to get some ice cream if you’re up for it.”

“There’s that sweet tooth of yours,” Lexa winked sarcastically.

Lexa, after drastically more drinks than she expected to have during what she was viewing in the front of her mind as a business meeting and in the back of her mind as something else she wasn’t quite sure of, opted to come back for her car in the morning. They walked for ice cream back towards Clarke’s. Clarke, equal parts enjoying the company and trying to get Lexa not to jump every time she touched her, reached for Lexa’s hand and held it as they strolled.

“You’re gonna have to loosen up,” Clarke squeezed Lexa’s hand and shook her arm. “We don’t need to be fucking on the table to sell this, but a little faux affection won’t kill you.”

“I’m loose!” Lexa yelped.

“It should be reassuring when I touch you!” Clarke snapped.

“I’m trying!” Lexa snapped back.

“Stop,” Clarke paused and pulled Lexa to a stop on the sidewalk with her. Lexa just looked at her expectantly. “Hug me.”

“Clarke,” Lexa’s voice was tight.

“Hug me,” Clarke held her arms open. Lexa just stared back. Clarke raised her brow and shrugged her open arms. “If you want to make this thing look natural, you need to stop hitting the fucking ceiling every time I touch you.”

“I’m sorry,” Lexa sighed. “I’m terrible at this. It’s got nothing to do with you,” Lexa tried but was cut off but Clarke engulfing her in a tight hug.

“Usually you say so little, and at the wrong times, you just say so much,” Clarke pressed her whole body against Lexa who tentatively settled her arms around Clarke. 

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Lexa muttered. Clarke ran her hands quickly up and down Lexa’s back under her suit jacket. Lexa shivered despite the evening heat.

“Oh my god,” Clarke laughed and let her hands come to rest at Lexa’s waist. Lexa started to soften in her arms. “When was the last time you were with someone new?”

“I’ve been with my girlfriend for over two years now, so it’s been a while,” Lexa glanced out the corner of her eye.

“Well, well!” Clarke pulled back and gave her a grin. “I’d say that’s a big stride you just made there!”

“I don’t know why you don’t know what a fast learner your girlfriend is,” Lexa tried to keep a straight face but couldn’t. Clarke gave her one more squeeze before continuing the walk to the ice cream shop. Lexa treated and they walked hand in hand all the way to Clarke’s. The ice breaking questions kept flowing between them, but somewhere along the walk they stopped being about Clarke’s character and they were actually about Clarke.

Still giggly and still buzzed with a fresh sugar high approaching, they stood on the steps of Clarke’s building longer than they both expected asking questions they only half cared about the answers to. They both just wanted to hear the other’s voice.

“Aside from all the digital stuff for work, I still paint and draw when I can find the spare time,” Clarke answered one of Lexa’s questions about work and art. “I did a lot of sketches on the drive across the country. I might make something out of them, but I haven’t decided yet.”

“That sounds pretty cool,” Lexa nodded.

“Do you want to see them?” Clarke pointed over her shoulder to the front door.

“For science? Or for…?” Lexa trailed off.

“Because you’re my friend and you asked me about my art and we’re right in front of my apartment?” Clarke held her eye.

“Sure,” Lexa decided she should just shut up and be easy going. She also had a sudden and desperate urge to see what Clarke’s apartment looked like, and she had lost count of the confidence boosting beers she consumed at the bar. “Lead the way.”

“I haven’t unpacked my office yet, but my place is kind of coming together,” Clarke prefaced as she pushed open the door and clicked on the lights. “Some stuff is still in storage. I’m going to move somewhere better after I figure out what the hell I’m doing. My bedframe hasn’t arrived yet which is a downer, but I’m trying to go with it.”

“It’s nice,” Lexa remarked as she took in the space.

Clarke had a lot of books. Her kitchen was sparse and her TV was small, but she had several book shelves. There were a few crates of vinyl, but no record player. Everything seemed half finished and somewhat temporary.

It was not lost on her that the only place to sit was on Clarke’s bed.

“It really isn’t, and you don’t have to say it is to make me feel better. It is what it is for now. Fresh start and all that,” Clarke opened the fridge and pulled out two beers. “You want one more?”

“Please,” Lexa accepted the can, thankful to have something to do with her hands.

“Grab a seat, I’ll find my sketches,” Clarke walked behind Lexa and brushed a hand past her lower back on the way to the bookcases. Lexa perched as carefully as she could on the end of Clarke’s bed. She ran her hand gently across the white bedspread and crossed her legs.

Clarke plopped down beside her with force that made the mattress dip and push them together. Clarke didn’t correct it, so Lexa didn’t either. The tiny air conditioning unit in Clarke’s budget apartment tried its best, but was no match for the hot night. Lexa slipped off her suit jacket leaving her in a sleeveless top.

“Alright,” Clarke handed Lexa a hardcover black sketchbook. “If I had the time on my drive, I made myself take a few extra minutes every time I stopped to draw something from wherever I was. It turned out to be mostly people which is new and different for me since so much of what I design is not.”

“Clarke,” Lexa said earnestly after leafing through the first few pages. With every page turn, their bare arms swished past each other. It was an accident at first, but grew intentional quickly. “These are incredible.”

“Thank you,” Clarke warmed right up. Her smile had hints of a few too many drinks, but her cheeks pinked at the compliments.

“Like, really incredible,” Lexa said with more sincerity as she paged past rough sketches of truck divers pumping gas, kids playing with dogs in small rest stop fields, a woman smoking a cigarette on the phone leaning against a minivan. The details Clarke noticed even in a rough sketch were so precise.

“It’s the first time I started really drawing for the joy of it again since the divorce. My brain kind of shut down for a while if it wasn’t work related,” Clarke brushed her hair over one shoulder and stared thoughtfully at the floor. Trying not to get wrapped up in every inch of Clarke’s exposed neck that became suddenly much more fascinating than the artwork in her lap, Lexa reached for her beer. The sketchbook tumbled off of her lap.

“Oh, shoot, I’m sorry!” Lexa reached down to pick up the fallen sketchbook. Clarke moved for it at the same time. Their hands bumped. When they turned to one another to apologize, they both became acutely aware of how close their mouths were.

Their noses almost touched. Clarke’s breath was warm on Lexa’s lips. The eye contact was the best kind of suffocating. Clarke bit her bottom lip when she flicked her eyes down to Lexa’s parted startled lips.

“Your eyes are so green,” Clarke blurted out.

“I should really be going,” Lexa replied nervously. “It’s late.”

“Sounds good, Babe,” Clarke stood up off the mattress with a slight wobble. She turned and held out both of her hands to help Lexa up from the low seat. The force and the drinks and the late hour caused both unsteady women to fall into each other.

“Oh! I’m sorry!” Lexa gasped. Clarke just laughed as she caught Lexa in a messy hug.

“No worries, Lex,” Clarke smiled sincerely. “Don’t forget your jacket,” Clarke pointed to Lexa’s suit jacket sitting on the bed.

“Right,” Lexa sighed and gently picked it up. Clarke walked her to the door a few short steps away. She leaned on the doorframe while Lexa slid into her jacket in the hallway.

“Give me a call tomorrow after you look at your schedule? We should get together one more time to get everything sorted,” Clarke had hopeful eyes. “Except, you know, we’ll get less drunk.”

“Sounds like a good idea,” Lexa chuckled. 

They both stood there a little too long. Clarke leaned her temple against the doorframe. Lexa set her hands on her hips awkwardly, unsure what she was supposed to do with them despite the fact that they were itching to tangle themselves in Clarke’s hair.

“Good night Sweetheart,” Clarke finally broke the tension with a silly laugh and reached out to give Lexa a final hug. “Get home safe. Text me when you get there.”

“Will do, Honey,” Lexa matched Clarke’s tone, aware that the pet names were nicknames, a quickly growing inside joke, a little armor to protect their secret, but she was starting to enjoy them.

“Thank you for an excellent evening, Lexa,” Clarke said with more purpose. The eye contact that followed skewed the rules on what was real and what was fake.

“It was my pleasure, Clarke,” Lexa nodded curtly. She knew she shouldn’t hug Clarke again.


	6. And Her Dad Called To Mess Things Up!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tension heightens when Lexa gets a phone call.

“Sorry I’m late!” Clarke hurried into the bar on Friday afternoon. Raven and Octavia were sitting in a booth working on a happy hour pitcher to make the work week dissolve. “I had a call run long.”

“No worries! Sit! Drink! Join us!” Raven slid over so Clarke could sit down.

“Are you already working again?” Octavia asked as she poured Clarke a beer.

“Again?” Clarke huffed. “More like still. I was able to lighten my load before I left New York to give myself some semblance of a break, but there are those special few clients,” Clarke sighed and dropped her phone on the table. It dinged several times in a row.

“That’s no fun. Are they still blowing you up now?” Raven asked. 

“Ah, no,” Clarke replied. She had an impulsive grin on as she glanced over the messages. 

It was the kind of grin reserved for pleasant surprises and feeling cute about herself. A grin that came with compliments and flirts and well-timed punchlines that turned her on.

“Excuse me,” Octavia said flatly. “Clarke?”

“What?” Clarke glanced up, unaware of how much time she lost to her own quick pleasure spiral.

“Who are you talking to?” Octavia held her expectant glare.

“What? No one,” Clarke’s grin softened into a slightly guilty smile. “Just Lexa.”

“What’s up with that?” Raven cautiously raised a brow. The air in their booth grew thick with routine accusation. 

“What’s up with what?” Clarke shrugged, dropped her phone back on the table and covered her shifting expressions with a sip of beer.

“Why are you flirty smiling at texts from her?” Raven pressed. Their faces didn’t budge.

“I’m not flirty smiling! She told me a joke for fuck’s sake,” Clarke reached for the phone to turn it over. “We’re friends. We text sometimes.”

The phone pinged again.

“Sometimes?” Octavia tried.

“What’s with you two?” Clarke glanced back and forth at them. Her phone chimed on the table in the silence.

“If that’s her, you have to chug that whole beer,” Raven pointed at the phone. It sounded its pleasant alarm once more. Clarke closed her eyes and let out an annoyed sigh.

“If they’re both her, you’re getting the whole tab,” Octavia doubled down.

“You guys, come on,” Clarke muttered. 

Ding.

“Well?” Octavia folded her arms and rested them on the table. “Flip it over.”

Clarke held her stare for a few more beats before heaving a deep breath. She silently turned the phone over.

“Oh shit!” Raven whooped. “Pay up, Griff!” They laughed and high fived and Clarke just rolled her eyes.

“What are you even saying to each other that she’d need to send you five messages right now? Isn’t she at work?” Octavia snatched the phone off of the table before Clarke could grab it and started scrolling. “Clarke Griffin! Selfies?! Are you fucking shitting me?”

“Oh my god, there are a TON of them!” Raven gaped with glee. Clarke hid her face in her hands.

“We’re getting to know each other! I have to pretend to be her serious, longtime girlfriend in like a week!” She’d been caught red handed and had the cheeks to match.

“Is that why you thought it would be super cute to send this one of yourself in a towel in your tiny bathroom mirror? Jesus Captain-Obvious-Loving Christ! Clarke! These are absolute thirst traps!” Octavia couldn’t stop laughing. Clarke dropped her forehead onto the table. Raven was laughing so hard that no sound would come out.

“Give me that!” Clarke grabbed the phone back. “We were joking about how dumb and small my stupid apartment is this morning!”

“So you thought you’d remind her of it while you were naked?” Raven held a hand to her chest, trying to calm down.

“Have I mentioned how nice it is to be back home yet?” Clarke muttered.

“Alright, alright, all kidding aside,” Raven calmed her laughter and pointed at Octavia to do the same. “What the hell is going on? Cause we’ve known you literally your entire life, and towel selfies and that girly smile are not how you make new friends.”

“They are how she makes new friends, but those friends are for fucking,” Octavia spoke evenly so she wouldn’t start laughing again.

“Nothing is going on with us,” Clarke sighed. She could feel the weight of their stares. “It’s a little confusing because we get along really well and we have a lot fun together and we have to pretend we’re in love. She makes me laugh and she’s extremely attractive, but I am her pretend lover for a few weeks, and then that’s it.”

“Extremely attractive?” Raven smirked.

“She makes you laugh?” Octavia egged her on.

“Can we please just change the subject?” Clarke put her phone in her pocket to stop the onslaught of questions that she hadn’t necessarily figured out the answers to for herself yet.

\---

“Hey! Glad you found it okay!” Lexa pulled her apartment door open. Clarke waited on the other side in a black dress that traced her silhouette with precision accuracy accompanied by a friendly smile that Lexa found herself thinking about way too often throughout the week. She had a bottle of wine in her hand and she looked uncomfortably good.

“Your instructions were very thorough,” Clarke smiled knowingly.

“Come on in,” Lexa held the door open wider and gestured grandly. She had a sleeveless top on and Clarke was quietly pleased that her new favorite shoulders were in full view.

“Check you out! This place is great, Lex!” Clarke nodded in approval as she took in Lexa’s modern two bedroom. The kitchen was neat and clean and sleek, all white with chrome fixtures. The kitchen island had a modest charcuterie spread waiting patiently with two empty wine glasses beside it. The wrap around sofa in the open living room was dark and fit into the grayscale scene of sharp angles and soft textiles. 

“Thank you,” Lexa remained modest and hoped the little grin tugging at her lips could take on an heir of humble gratitude for the compliments and not give away that her nickname coming out of Clarke’s mouth with familiarity was comfortably arousing. “I’ve lived here almost five years now and have finally gotten the place to my liking.”

“Hey, do I live with you? I was going over my facts this morning to keep them fresh and I couldn’t remember where we landed on that,” Clarke asked as Lexa handed her a corkscrew.

“I believe by the way Anya has framed a lot of her nonsense that you do live with me,” Lexa sighed at the mere mention of her best friend’s nonsense and the reminder of the upcoming performance. “Or rather, we live together.”

“While we’re on the subject of who knows what,” Clarke opened the wine with a practiced grace and held Lexa’s eye contact. The pop of the cork interrupted them and made Lexa flinch. “Since this is technically also Lincoln’s party, are there going to be a lot of people from Grounder there? Do we need to be ‘on’ at this thing tonight?”

“Son of a bitch,” Lexa rubbed her temples to try and put a dam of tranquility in front of the stress headaches cascading to the forefront. “I’ve been so busy I hadn’t even thought of that.”

“Sorry, Babe,” Clarke gave a sympathetic shrug as she poured wine for both of them. “I hadn’t really thought of it either, but whether Octavia will admit it or not, it’s his party, too. I just figured.”

“No, you’re right,” Lexa replied as she let out a deep sigh. Her hands were flattened on the kitchen island. She shifted her weight and Clarke took in the view of Lexa’s toned arms twitching and tensing to match her frustrated mood. “I guess we are, then.”

“In that case, Darlin’,” Clarke held her glass up. “To us.”

“To us,” Lexa clinked her glass against Clarke’s in a polite yet begrudging surrender.

“Why don’t we look at it as a dress rehearsal?” Clarke said with casual, hopeful optimism. “This is maybe even a little ideal in the right light.”

“And what light could that possibly be?” Lexa asked as she flicked her eyes up to meet Clarke’s. She wondered if Clarke wore contacts or if her eyes were really that shade of blue.

“Anyone there who knows, knows us well and knows it’s fake. We can take this fake relationship for a test drive on a bunch of acquaintances that don’t matter with some genuine feedback from our own best friends. Honestly, Sweetheart, I think this is a blessing,” Clarke shrugged and took a sip of her wine. “Certainly not a dry run, cause I’m gonna get tanked on celebratory champagne, but definitely a rare opportunity for applicable practice.”

“I’m going to forget all the details when I’m drunk,” Lexa muttered.

“Who cares? So is everyone else! This is a Lincoln & Octavia party. It’s going to get tastefully out of hand,” Clarke perked up with a devilish smile.

“I have to behave a little,” Lexa allowed herself a hint of a smile. “I’m one of the groomsmen in their wedding.”

“Well, fancy fucking that, cause you’re sleeping with a bridesmaid,” Clarke joked. Lexa visibly tensed. Clarke had been worried about pushing her too far in their quest for the perfect fake relationship. “Lexa?” Clarke asked, all flirting and laughs stripped away leaving genuine concern.

“Yes?” Lexa asked.

“Are you okay?” Clarke’s features looked different. Her confident lips that begged for the kind of kisses that came with teeth softened into a place to rest a weary forehead. The come-fuck-me evaporated from her eyes leaving clean sheets to lay down and genuinely rest. 

“I’m okay,” Lexa lied.

“Look, if you want to call the whole thing off, that’s completely fine with me. You’re not going to hurt my feelings,” Clarke moved around the island to be closer to her. “I’m doing this for you, but we don’t have to. I’m in if you want me, but it’s totally your call if this is all too much.”

“I’m okay,” Lexa said through a calculated exhale. “I think at this point it’s too late not to just carry on.”

“I could have a surprise work thing and not be able to make it?” Clarke shrugged. “Business is booming both in my real and fake life,” she grimaced, trying not to think about work. “it wouldn’t be very farfetched.”

“No, no,” Lexa finally relented into a smile. “This has been good for me in a lot of ways. And I’m having a lot of fun with you. I don’t know how to say this, but I wouldn’t want us breaking off our fake relationship to be something that comes between our new friendship.”

“Well,” Clarke began slowly, processing Lexa’s words very carefully. “Then you better be careful who we lie to if you want to keep me around. You might have to actually ask me out and start dating me to keep up appearances.”

She was so, so close.

Their hands were tucked gently around the stems of the glasses, but a tiny shift would let them touch. Clarke’s hair smelled the same as it did on their date. She had straightened it tonight. Her makeup was dark and smoky for an evening party. The way she moved pushed the air between them around in new ways.

“I suppose if that’s the worst-case scenario,” Lexa picked up her wine and downed half of it. She opened her mouth to let fly a devastatingly flirty blow, but paused when her phone rang. They both looked down at it on the counter in unison.

The screen said ‘Dad.’

“Pick it up,” Clarke encouraged her. Lexa’s furrowed brow and dramatic shift in body language cued Clarke into the stress of the word on the screen. “You don’t have to ignore it on my account.”

“Uh, yeah, I’m, um, I’m sorry,” Lexa stuttered and fumbled with the phone. “Hello?”

“Alexandria! I’m surprised I caught you!” They were still face to face. Lexa didn’t move away. She liked Clarke’s presence in her space. Clarke could hear him on the other end of the line.

“Yeah, I’m getting ready to go to an engagement party, but I have a few minutes,” Lexa cleared her throat uncomfortably. Clarke wordlessly made reassuring eye contact and then topped off Lexa’s wine with a knowing nod. “What’s, ah, what’s going on?”

“Well, Kiddo! You’re never gonna believe it,” He had a typical suburban dad cadence to his speech and it felt out of place. Clarke couldn’t imagine anyone calling this absolute powerhouse of an adult female specimen ‘kiddo,’ but she didn’t react. “Denise and I were talking earlier today about her cousin’s wedding coming up next week in Maine.”

“No,” Lexa let out involuntarily. The color washed from her face. She picked up the full glass of wine and chugged it.

“It turns out that her cousin’s fiancé works for Anya, and wouldn’t you know it, we’re all going to be at the same wedding!”

Clarke, expressionless, dumped the rest of the bottle into Lexa’s glass.

“You’ve got to be fucking kidding me,” Lexa pinched the bridge of her nose and begged her composure to cling to life. There was no way the world was that small and that cruel.

“Whoa, Whoa, Lexie, that mouth of yours gets nastier every time I talk to you!”

“Lexie?” Clarke mouthed at her with a combination of a grimace and a wince. Lexa rolled her eyes in response.

“Are you talking about the Forester/Reed wedding at Bear Mountain?” Lexa’s voice tightened. 

There was just no way.

Clarke reached out and put a reassuring hand on Lexa’s waist.

“Yeah! Can you believe it?”

Lexa leaned into Clarke’s touch and closed her eyes hoping that if she opened them again, maybe it would all just be a dream. A confusing, sexy, horrible dream.

“I assure you, I cannot,” Lexa spoke evenly. Her front door opened and startled them both. Clarke took a guilty step backwards to put some space between them.

“Hey, Lex! I’m a few minutes early, but I know we need to get over there since we’re groomsmen so we can help get the,” Anya stopped short at the site of Clarke and Lexa in an almost embrace. “Oh. Clarke. Hi.”

“Hey,” Clarke scurried over to Anya. Lexa turned her back to them and spoke quietly on the phone. “Her father’s on the phone.”

“That prick? Why?” Anya scoffed. “What the hell does he want?”

“It sounds like his girlfriend is Aden’s fiancé’s cousin and that we’ll all be seeing them next weekend,” Clarke spoke very lowly.

Anya didn’t speak. She clamped her eyes shut, cocked her head to the side and slowly pulled in a deep breath. Her entire body took on the energy of preparing for a bar fight.

“I fucking hate that guy,” Anya said through clenched teeth.

“Hey, Anya, sorry,” Lexa sighed as she turned back around.

“Is that motherfucker really going to be at Aden’s wedding?” Anya dove in immediately.

“Hello to you, too,” Lexa nodded at her.

“Sorry,” Anya scowled. “Hi.”

“And yes,” Lexa replied, motioning for them to join her back at the island. “It turns out that my punishment for lying has already reared its head and my father will be in Maine with us next weekend. We have time for another if you’d like a glass of wine,” Lexa glanced at her watch.

“Do you have any booze instead?” Anya asked hopefully.

“Why don’t you just go ahead and help yourself to whatever. I don’t know why you’re suddenly being polite about it,” Lexa waved at the cabinets. 

“You good?” Clarke asked as she sidled up to Lexa and put a comforting hand on the back of her neck. Anya watched them out of the corner of her eye as she took inventory of Lexa’s liquor.

“Who the hell knows anymore,” Lexa shrugged and picked up her wine. Clarke’s affection was starting to feel comforting and reassuring in all of the best ways. “By the way, Anya. We realized that a bunch of people from work are going to be there tonight, so guess what? The show’s officially on.” Lexa wrapped her arm around Clarke’s waist and pulled her close. Clarke, pleasantly startled by the confident, rough affection didn’t have time to hide her interest.

“Wait, what?” Anya shook her head. It was getting weird. They looked and moved and sounded so natural together.

“I’m going to need your feedback on whether or not we’re pulling this off,” Lexa nodded her head at Clarke beside her.

“You two have really thought this thing though, huh?” Anya said with an impressed smile. “You’re really going to go for it?”

“To us, apparently,” Lexa held her glass up.


	7. And They Had To Practice!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Clarke puts Lexa through faux affection bootcamp.

“Are you two coming?” Anya asked over her shoulder as they headed up the front walk of Octavia and Lincoln’s building. Lexa and Clarke were hand in hand dragging behind.

“Can you give us a sec?” Clarke asked. The truly sympathetic need in her eyes gave Anya pause.

“Fine,” Anya nodded once curtly, then punched in the code to the door and let herself in. “If you’re not up there in ten minutes, I’m coming back down.”

“You ready for this?” Clarke asked quietly once Anya was out of sight behind the door. “Last chance to back out,” she added with a sincere, reassuring smile. Lexa took a deep breath. She shook her hands out and bounced foot to foot to loosen herself up.

“I should’ve had another glass of wine,” Lexa whined.

“Look at me,” Clarke said firmly. Lexa felt the wine she drank earlier slosh through her body when she met eyes with Clarke. No words came when Clarke rested her hands on Lexa’s waist. “I’m not me. You’re not you. This is all fake. This is all a means to an end. A fun, if not a little weird, thing we’re doing to avoid some unsavory explanations. We’re going to a few parties and taking a quick trip, and in two weeks we’ll just be friends who had a wild experience together and everything will be normal again.”

“Right,” Lexa snuck out between deep breaths. “Right.”

“Let’s get this out of the way while we’re alone so the first time doesn’t have to be in front of anyone,” Clarke stretched her neck out and rolled her shoulders.

“Get what out of the way?” Lexa asked. 

Clarke kissed her.

Hard.

Lexa’s pure shock was evident in how stiff she was. Clarke squeezed her closer and laughed against Lexa’s lips.

“And that is exactly why I wanted to get you alone,” Clarke chuckled through a sigh and pointed a finger at Lexa. “Why are you like this?” Clarke giggled and gave her a little shake to break the tension.

“Why didn’t you tell me you were going to kiss me?” Lexa snapped.

“Because you probably wouldn’t let me! Loosen the hell up, shake it off, wrap your head around the fact that I’m not me and you’re not you and kiss me again like you fucking mean it,” Clarke ordered.

“Is this what you’re like in relationships?” Lexa yelped. “God, you’re so controlling!”

“Lexa,” Clarke’s face fell flat. “Our relationship is fake.”

“I know!” Lexa huffed. “You’re really nice and you’re cool and you’re fun, and a little too good at this. It’s confusing.”

“I’m going to kiss you now,” Clarke resolved to a patient smile. “And you’re going to pretend that you like it even if you don’t. Got it?”

“Got it,” Lexa scowled.

“Get over here,” Clarke shook her head and laughed off Lexa’s rigid behavior before kissing her gently this time.

Lexa didn’t have to pretend that she liked it. She didn’t have to pretend that she wanted her fingers tangled in Clarke’s hair, didn’t have to pretend that Clarke’s lips woke something up inside of her that had been dead, dormant and imprisoned under layers and layers of guilt, repression and regret for years.

She didn’t have to pretend that she was disappointed when Clarke pulled away.

“See?” Clarke shrugged smugly and paired it with a grin. “Was that so hard?”

“Fake me loved it,” Lexa sighed through the smirk that the real her held back.

“Fake me didn’t think it was so bad, either,” Clarke replied. “Now let’s get in there before Anya comes looking for us. Are you ready now?” Clarke nodded her head at the door.

“Ready,” Lexa nodded firmly.

“Let’s go get ‘em, Tiger,” Clarke gave Lexa’s ass a sportsman’s slap and strode confidently to the door.

“Fake me doesn’t like that!” Lexa gasped.

“Yes, she does,” Clarke scoffed as she punched in the door code.

“I’m telling people that fake you has some weird hobbies,” Lexa grumbled.

“Fake you is the one that likes me,” Clarke shrugged and pushed the door open.

They were greeted with cheers and hugs upon entering Lincoln and Octavia’s place. The close-knit crew of usual suspects were there helping put the finishing touches of the party together. Clarke was immediately swept away by Raven to play catch up with some of their old friends and to get the bar set up. Anya yanked Lexa away to move some furniture around to make space for the impending flood of friends and family set to arrive within the hour.

Clarke, always the friend to get the party going, worked with Raven to arrange booze and beer and buckets of ice for easy access. She caught Lexa’s eye across the apartment who was holding a chair steady while Anya stood on it to hang a congratulations banner in the living room.

She winked at Lexa as their gaze lingered a little too long. The resulting half smile in return made Real Clarke and Fake Clarke’s boundaries a tad too cloudy for her liking.

“Clarke,” Raven said for the third time.

“What? Sorry, What?” Clarke shook her head and brought herself back to the task at hand.

“You good?” Raven’s eyebrows spoke volumes.

“Yes,” Clarke said with indignance as she poured herself a drink. “Just thinking about my toast.”

“Looks a little like you’re thinking about something else,” Raven followed Clarke’s eyes across the room to spot Lexa and Anya bickering about thumb tacks and double-sided tape. “How goes the acting assignment?”

“Her father called her today. Through some sadistic twist of rude fate, his girlfriend is the bride’s cousin and he’s going to be there next weekend,” Clarke replied. “So, things are kind of tense. She just found out before we came over.”

“Are you still going through with it?” Raven asked.

“We’re in it too deep now, so we might as well,” Clarke sighed. She couldn’t get the sensation of Lexa’s lips off her own no matter how many sips of her drink she used to wash it away. “There’s going to be Grounder people here tonight, so heads up. If anyone asks, we’re officially together. Thankfully we both have so much to do tonight that we won’t have to spend much time together.”

“I’m impressed that you’re both actually fine with all of this,” Raven chuckled. “I mean, you I can understand.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Clarke straightened up. 

“Nothing bad. You’re that flavor of confident. You know exactly who you are. You know what you want, and you act accordingly. It’s great,” Raven dumped a bag of ice into a bucket. Clarke shoved bottles of rosé in behind her. “Lexa on the other hand,” Raven rolled her eyes.

“She’s a little stiff,” Clarke smiled warmly thinking of Lexa jumping away from her touch over and over and trying not to think of Lexa not moving away from Clarke’s kiss. “We’re working on it. It’s been fun getting to know her. She’s really funny.”

“I didn’t know she was funny,” Raven shrugged. “She’s always so quiet.”

“She actually has a lot to say,” Clarke couldn’t look at Raven. She could feel her wine buzz bringing way too many feelings she was keeping in check to the forefront. “We talk all day and night. She’s interesting and she’s really smart.”

“So, what happens after this wedding?” Raven knew her best friend well enough to smell what was happening. Lexa’s grins from across the room weren’t for show.

Clarke was giving them right back.

“I’m going to worry about that after the wedding,” Clarke shrugged. 

“Clarke,” Raven said knowingly. Clarke stopped what she was doing and faced Raven earnestly. “Come on.”

“Raven, please don’t,” Clarke pleaded. “Not right now.”

“Be careful, girl, alright?” Raven relented and gave Clarke’s shoulder a squeeze.

The evening was as busy as advertised. Clarke and Raven kept the bar and the food replenished all night and ran interference to tidy up as best they could while the party was in full swing. Anya and Lexa directed people to places they could put gifts, moved furniture as needed and brought supplies in from the balcony to help Clarke and Raven. 

Lexa and Clarke were able to exchange encouraging glances through the crowd. Clarke spotted a crew of guys high fiving Lincoln and clapping him on the back.

“Babe!” Clarke shouted. Lexa whipped her head around. Clarke’s arms were full of bottles of bubbles for her upcoming toast. “Hey, are those Lincoln’s work friends?” She nodded at them.

“Yeah, most of them are warehouse managers that work under him,” Lexa replied and took a few bottles out of Clarke’s arms to help.

“They’ve been watching me,” Clarke said quietly as they wove through the party back to the kitchen.

“I don’t know how to tell you this, Clarke,” Lexa put the bottles on ice. “But everybody is.”

“I haven’t even said anything!” Clarke’s eyes widened. She’d had more wine than she wanted to admit. “Are you telling people?”

“It’s not because of us,” Lexa laughed. There was a sweetness to her laugh that was becoming something Clarke spent the day looking forward to.

“Are you sure? Should I get a little girlfriendy?” Clarke shimmied her shoulders and Lexa laughed again.

“Clarke, I promise it has nothing to do with me. They’re checking you out because you’re beautiful,” Lexa replied. Clarke looked away and rolled her jaw, taken back.

“Shut up, no one can hear us right now. You don’t need to say shit like that,” Clarke busied herself with freshening up the table to hide that she was blushing.

“I wasn’t,” Lexa tried, but she got cut off.

“Well, well, well!” Bellamy Blake boomed as he approached the drink table. Lexa scowled. “Clarke Griffin! The prodigal daughter returns!”

“Oh my god!” Clarke lit up and threw her arms around him. Lexa decided not to tackle why the display caused disappointment to rumble through her chest. Clarke hugged him close and put an exaggerated kiss on his cheek. He hugged her so tight that he picked her up off the ground. “Did you just get here?!”

“Literally just! My flight down got delayed. Just ubered from the airport!” He laughed. “Holy shit, you look incredible!”

“Yeah, well, I shed a hundred and eighty pounds of useless dead weight a little over a year ago, so,” Clarke sarcastically flipped her perfectly straight, obnoxiously shiny, golden hair over her shoulder.

“For what it’s worth, I never fucking liked that guy,” Bellamy said strongly.

“Turns out men are trash,” Clarke shrugged and gravitated closer to Lexa.

“We really are,” he laughed and reached for a beer from one of the ice buckets. “I always liked the women you dated better anyway.”

Lexa’s eyes tried to give away her shock at the blasé comment and new, somewhat game changing information that Clarke had dated more than one woman and that no one felt that they should tell her about it.

Including Clarke.

“Bell, have you met Lexa?” Clarke put her hand on the small of Lexa’s back and invited her into the conversation. “She’s one of Lincoln’s groomsmen.”

“Of course I have! It was a long time ago, though. Nice to see you again, Lexa,” he held his hand out for a shake. She took it and used her best boardroom stoicism to remain cool.

“Welcome back,” Lexa nodded politely.

“I haven’t found O yet. I thought she might be near the booze, but I guess I was wrong,” he laughed. “I’ll catch you in a bit. For real, though, Griff. You look awesome. You look happy and healthy and it’s really nice to have you back.”

“Thank you,” Clarke replied earnestly and gave him a wave as he faded into the crowd.

“Clarke,” Lexa said after they both watched him go.

“Yes?” Clarke turned to her with a welcoming smile.

“I don’t know how to ask you this without sounding blunt or rude,” Lexa paused.

“You can ask me anything you want, Honey. You know that,” Clarke bumped her hip against Lexa’s with a playful smile.

“Are you bisexual?” Lexa blurted out.

“Yes,” Clarke replied simply. “Are you a lesbian?”

“Yes,” Lexa fumbled.

“Then this is even more believable than you originally thought, huh?” Clarke smirked. Raven shouted Clarke’s name across the room and pointed to her watch. “Duty calls,” Clarke rolled her eyes. 

She was gone before Lexa had time to form a proper reaction.

“Alright, alright!” Clarke shouted over the crowd of the party. Bellamy helped her up to stand on a chair to address the packed apartment. “Bellamy here is the manly maid of honor to this friggin’ lovely bride, but he hates giving speeches and he’s saving his for the big day. He asked me to do the honors tonight.” Clarke adjusted her footing on the wobbly Ikea dining room chair that she perched on in heels. “Oh shit, Jasper, can you see up my dress?”

“Like he’d tell you if he could!” Raven reached out and flicked Jasper’s nose. He swatted her away and they all laughed.

“Hey,” Anya whispered and elbowed Lexa. They found a spot to lean against a wall at the opposite end of the apartment out of the way.

“What?” Lexa hissed, her eyes trained on Clarke over the heads of all the party goers.

“Are you okay?” Anya asked.

“I swear to god, I’m going to start charging people money to ask me that question,” Lexa grumbled.

“I’ve known Octavia since the first day of kindergarten,” Clarke said as the last of the guests quieted down. “I don’t know if I even believe it, but that was thirty years ago next month.”

“Fine,” Anya grumbled. “Suffer alone.”

“I have always been by her side for better or for worse, and there were a few worses that I wasn’t sure we’d come back from,” Clarke gave Octavia a comedic grimace and the future bride laughed. “And while she always said that I was the smart one, Octavia has taught me so much over the years.”

“She’s not straight,” Lexa whispered. Her gaze was still fixed on Clarke. Lexa couldn’t shake the feeling that somehow the rules were different now that she knew Clarke had loved other women.

“So?” Anya whispered back.

“I learned patience in my friendship with Octavia,” Clarke paused for impending laughter that followed. “I learned how to roll a joint from Octavia,” Clarke gave Monty and Jasper a knowing look. Their high school friends all laughed. “I learned how to French braid from Octavia and I learned that if I told my mom I was staying at her house and she told her mon she was staying at mine, that we could get away with doing whatever we wanted all night long from Octavia, but I think she stole that one from television.”

“I don’t know,” Lexa whispered. “Don’t you think that makes it more complicated?”

“I guess I don’t know why any of it’s complicated if it’s all fake?” Anya whispered back.

“As we got older, I learned how hard it is to say goodbye from Octavia. How hard it is to grow up. To make necessary changes even if it means you need to leave. How hard it is to have the friend you love so much that makes your heart feel whole on the other side of the country,” Clarke’s smile was as warm as summer sun on a Sunday beach trip. Octavia grinned up at her on the makeshift chair podium with the happiest eyes. “Especially when you really need her.”

“It’s complicated because she’s a stone-cold fox,” Lexa muttered before taking a swig of her beer.

“I’m not straight and I’m a stone-cold fox and it never made things complicated between us,” Anya shrugged.

“I never had to pretend I was in love with you,” Lexa sighed. She couldn’t turn and look at Anya, but keeping her eyes on Clarke’s curves and smile and watching her command a crowd wasn’t much better.

“You son of a bitch,” Anya swatted Lexa in the arm. “You do fucking like her!”

“I didn’t say that,” Lexa snapped.

“Over time as we did our best to build our own lives and figure out what that even means, I learned something else from Octavia,” Clarke’s tone leveled out into something more serious. “I learned that watching your best friend find her absolute soulmate is a goddamn pleasure in the highest regard.”

Clarke received a burst of cheers and applause. Octavia gave Lincoln a big kiss. The room was so full of love and joy and celebration. Lexa leaned on the back wall with her arms crossed. 

“Lincoln? She’s yours to teach now, and yours to learn from. You make each other the best versions of yourselves. Keep teaching each other. Keep listening. And Lincoln?” Clarke gave him the eye. “If you can’t figure out what the hell she’s trying to teach you, you call us!” Clarke pointed at herself, then down at Raven and Bellamy below her. 

“Clarke, your number is on speed dial,” Lincoln laughed.

“I’ve got you, man,” Clarke winked at him and gave him a finger gun. “But my hope for you two is that you’ll always cherish your love. Love is so honest, complicated, messy, fabulous, difficult, confusing, exciting and downright magical. If you do it right, it won’t always be easy, but it will always be completely and totally worth it. I have total faith that the two of you have everything you need to teach each other how to make it last forever.”

“Crap, she is kind of awesome,” Anya winced. “So she’s bi, huh? Maybe I should hit on her.”

“Always so helpful,” Lexa sighed as she faked a smile and clapped with everyone else.

“I was blowing smoke before. I haven’t seen her in years. I knew she was cool, but yikes, Lex,” Anya dropped her arm around Lexa’s shoulder. “Good fucking luck.”

“To Lincoln and Octavia,” Clarke held her glass up and the room followed suit. “We love you and we’re here for you. Wishing you so much happiness that you’ll want to go around again.”

“Here, here!” Anya shouted from the back of the room. It caught Clarke’s attention and she and Lexa met eyes. The smile that twitched even wider across Clarke’s face didn’t go unnoticed.

“Now, everybody drink and get back to this excellent party!” Clarke shouted before downing her glass of champagne.


	8. And Their Friends Are Suspicious!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The line between fake and real gets blurrier with every moment…and every drink.

“Lex! Can you help me with this?” Clarke called to Lexa. The party was winding down to mostly close friends as the hours ticked by. With formalities evaporating, Clarke and Raven were clearing the pop up tables of food and drinks to play drinking games.

“Excuse me one second,” Lexa said politely to the warehouse managers she’d been socializing with. 

She visited the warehouse to see Lincoln now and then, and she made all of her sales teams come through and meet the distribution team when she had anyone in the area. They respected that she made her people see faces and match names to anyone they planned to speak to on the phone in their bossy sales voices demanding favors. The higher ups told her it was a waste of time, but she had the fewest shipping issues in the country by a large margin.

She respected them and cared about them and knew she couldn’t do her job without them. They respected her far more than any of her peers in return.

“Hey, Woods, hold up,” one of the guys stopped her.

“Yes?” Lexa paused. She was drunker than she planned to be but was keeping it all together as best she could.

“Is that your girlfriend?” One of them asked. She guessed they had been pushing each other to work up the nerve to ask her by the reactions of his peers.

“C’mon, Babe! Bring those muscles over here and show Raven and I how it’s done!” Clarke cried. She had also had a lot to drink. As a result, she became even more confident and loose and lovely if such a thing were possible. The guys all perked up.

“Yes,” Lexa replied with purpose. They all turned and looked to see Clarke drinking straight from one of the champagne bottles, throwing her arm around Octavia and cheering as she passed the bottle to Raven. “That’s my girlfriend,” Lexa feigned calm, stood up a little straighter and spoke as evenly as she could.

“She seems dope,” One of the guys laughed at Clarke’s mischief with her friends.

“She actually is quite dope,” Lexa grinned. She meant it.

“So, are you going to introduce us, or what?” he asked. They all leaned in to hear her response over the music that Raven turned up as she drank from the bottle.

“I, uh,” Lexa turned and looked again. Clarke, Raven and Octavia were in the middle of a group of their friends dancing with the table moving project completely abandoned. “She looks kind of busy,” Lexa tried as she watched Clarke belt the lyrics along with Raven using the empty bottle as a microphone.

“Lex!” Clarke tried again, this time beckoning for Lexa to join them on the makeshift dance floor. Noticing who Lexa was with, coupled with the panic in her eyes, Clarke knew it was time to perform and she danced her way over. “I heard some rumors that the bride and groom want to play flip cup, so we’re getting the tables ready!” Clark sidled up to Lexa and took her place tucked in neatly to her side. “Your presence is requested,” Clarke wore a sloppy grin induced by too much fun as she reached up and booped Lexa’s nose with her index finger.

“Sorry guys, it looks like I’m being summoned,” Lexa turned to the warehouse crew.

“Oh! Shit, I’m sorry. I’m interrupting,” Clarke turned to them as well. “Raven has another song cued up, so you have a minute,” Clarke leaned more of her weight into Lexa. She had been dancing and drinking and laughing and her perfume and her hair products were mixed with her sweat and it was just awesome.

“That’s great. The guys here were all just hoping I would introduce them to my girlfriend,” Lexa let her hand come to rest at the small of Clarke’s back. The curve of her hand fit perfectly. She liked it there, and she liked that Clarke leaned the slightest hint closer in response.

“Oh! I’m so sorry,” Clarke rolled her eyes and held her hand out to shake. “Hi! I’m Clarke!” The handshakes and names and jokes between Clarke and the guys flew back and forth in front of Lexa’s eyes at a speed she wasn’t prepared for. Within seconds, Clarke had them all laughing at some completely made up story about missing the holiday party that they had not rehearsed.

“Woods, man, you never told us your partner was so awesome!” One of the younger guys laughed. “What a bummer you haven’t been at so many office events, Clarke! You gotta come around more!”

“Thankfully work has me predominantly in LA for the foreseeable future, so I am hoping that we get to spend a lot more time together,” Clarke gave Lexa a convincing pair of moon eyes before leaving a sloppy, excited kiss on Lexa’s temple that made her blush.

“Hey,” Raven elbowed Anya across the room. They were hovering over the stereo and picking out a soundtrack for the impending college style debauchery.

“Yeah?” Anya asked after polishing off her drink.

“Are you seeing this shit?” Raven nodded at Clarke and Lexa. They had their backs to their friends as they talked with the warehouse team. Anya looked up just in time to see Clarke kiss Lexa’s cheek.

It wasn’t the way they looked at each other, although that was quickly departing from performative, fake love into something far harder to decipher. It was their hands. Anya spotted it at Lexa’s apartment earlier in the evening. The way they touched each other was so natural. Too natural. The casual drape of arms around one another. The reassuring touch of each other’s waist. Clarke intimately resting her hand on the back of Lexa’s neck. Lexa with a cavalier lean and a calm, intuitive hand where Clarke’s hips, ass and back all came together.

That was a very specific touch.

Friends didn’t do that.

“I don’t even know where to begin with all of that,” Anya rolled her eyes. 

“I don’t think it’s as fake as they’re telling themselves it is,” Raven furrowed her brow and tried to focus on cueing up a playlist and not on Clarke laughing with such 24 carat joy before squeezing Lexa close. The smiles they shared weren’t just drunk smiles. 

Clarke looked genuinely happy.

“Clarke said that Lexa is really funny,” Raven turned away from the stereo. “Is Lexa funny?”

“Lexa actually is pretty funny,” Anya couldn’t help but grin at so many memories. “It’s because she’s brilliant. She doesn’t usually let anyone see it, though. She doesn’t feel like most people are worth getting to know well enough to let them see the real version of her.”

Clarke’s laugh rose over the din of the party as the songs changed.

“Do you think this is a good idea?” Raven chewed her lip as she searched for the right way to phrase it.

“I guess I don’t think it’s a terrible idea,” Anya shrugged. “Whether it’s fake or not, I haven’t seen Lexa enjoy herself like that in years.”

“You know you’re gonna have to basically live tweet this entire wedding weekend to us back home, right?” Raven eyed her.

“This thing is in the middle of nowhere. I lied to work that I needed my hotspot upgraded for work travel, but I knew I’d be sending a ton of photos back to you all,” Anya eyed her right back.

“Nice,” Raven grinned.

“Alright, bitches! My mom and her friends are gone, so let’s play some flip cup!” Octavia shouted through cupped hands. “Woods! Griffin! I don’t care what you’re in the middle of, get your asses over here!”

“Sorry, guys,” Lexa shrugged at the group from work. 

“Lincoln, you and your friends verses me and my friends!” Octavia pointed firmly at her future husband with a plastic folding table between them.

“You have more friends than I do!” Lincoln yelped as all of the people Octavia grew up with started congregating on her side of the table. Clarke and Lexa approached still wrapped around one another. Through all of the booze she had consumed, Octavia could still see semi-straight through one eye.

“Fine,” Octavia shrugged. “You can have Clarke.”

“But Clarke’s good!” Bellamy huffed.

“I’m out of practice,” Clarke waved a hand. “Don’t sweat it.”

Clarke was rusty, but she was a former champion and it showed. She was between Anya and Lexa and got caught in the crossfire of them cheering and hi-fiving each other. The apartment erupted in trash talk, choruses of praise and excited whoops as the rounds of the game carried on. 

The party went from toasts and pleasantly buzzed work friends and cousins to red cups, carefully styled hair being pulled back aggressively and two sets of friends screaming in each other’s faces after drinking small amounts of beer and then trying to use their fine motor skills to flip their cups over in order. 

Lexa could not take her eyes off of Clarke’s index and middle finger gently tapping the plastic cup perfectly time after time. The copious booze mixed with the exquisite form of those fingers fluttering with precise accuracy made her acutely aware of how far across the line she and Clarke had taken the charade.

And how she wanted to rip that line away and take Clarke home with her.

“I thought you said you sucked at this!” Bellamy huffed. He was directly across the table from Clarke and she beat him every time.

“I said no such thing!” Clarke’s sarcastic offense made most of them laugh. She stood up as tall as she could and jammed her hands on her hips as she looked up at him. “I said I was out of practice! YOU said I was good!” She reached across the table and poked him in the chest.

“Fine! God, just,” he clenched his fists and let out the growl of a man being bested at physical activity by someone he used to know as a little girl. “Someone beat her! Come on!”

“Last round, kids!” Lincoln passed cans of beer down the table for everyone to prepare.

“I can’t make any promises as the last one here, team,” Lexa laughed as she filled her cup.

“Screw ‘em, Babe. I got you. I’ll give you a good lead,” Clarke grinned at Lexa and squeezed her arm affectionately.

“Thanks, Honey,” Lexa grinned back and rested a gentler hand on Clarke’s shoulder.

“Wait, what?” Bellamy shook his head. “Are you two dating?!”

“GO!” Lincoln shouted.

“Wait!” Bellamy tried again. 

“Just go, Bell! Shut up!” Octavia shouted back. 

The toppling cups moved in slow motion. Lexa waited anxiously for her turn, watching as her teammates flipped cup after cup and broke out into thunderous cheers as they blasted past their opponents. Bellamy tried asking Raven over the shouting about Clarke and Lexa, but no one could hear him. Clarke was swift and exact on her turn, showing off those nimble fingers. Everyone else was clapping and shouting trash talk and cheering on their teammates.

Lexa fumbled over and over.

“Lexa! Look at me!” Clarke shouted. Her competitive nature was alarming and attractive and animalistic and rough and it couldn’t be more distracting. Lexa paused and turned her head to Clarke with a hopeful look. “Just do it right!” Clarke barked and repeated the ass smack from earlier in the evening.

Lexa flipped her cup perfectly.

The room shook with excitement.

Bellamy scowled and crushed his plastic party cup in his hand.

“Holy shit! I can’t believe that worked!” Clarke lit up like Christmas before jumping into Lexa’s arms in celebration.

“Clarke, thank you for joining us!” Anya shook Clarke’s shoulders from behind. Lexa embraced Clarke hard. They were all laughing and cheering. The throwback to her younger, more fun days had Lexa riding high. Clarke’s drunk, joyous laugh right in her ear pushed Lexa over the top and she squeezed Clarke even closer.

“Ow! Fuck! Wait! Ow!” Clarke yelped when Lexa tried to pull away.

“What’s wrong?” Lexa wiped away her celebration and replaced it all with immediate concern.

“I think your watch is stuck in my hair,” Clarke winced when Lexa tried to move away.

“Seems you two are literally stuck on each other these days, huh?” Raven smirked from across the table. Clarke rolled her eyes in response.

“Let’s go to the bathroom and get some better light for this,” Lexa chuckled. She had no choice but to keep Clarke right beside her. Clarke’s arm around Lexa’s waist was voluntary. They exited carefully and made their way through the room full of sloshed friends.

“Good game, guys,” Raven slapped Anya a high five across the table.

“Are you all just ignoring me?” Bellamy threw his hand in the air at Clarke and Lexa’s back. “What the hell is up with that?”

“It’s a stunt for a work thing, would you keep you fucking voice down, please?” Raven back handed him in the chest. 

“Yeah, but like, IS it a stunt?” Octavia was giddy. “I knew Clarke could act a little, but god damn.”

“I’ve already arranged with Raven to make sure you’re all well informed next weekend,” Anya laughed as she gathered the empty cups from the game. She was too tipsy and having too much fun to navigate the touchy subject around whether or not her best friend was pretending anymore with a woman who seemed incredibly well-matched for her. “You guys wanna go again? We’re down two now, so dibs on Raven while those two detangle themselves.”

“Careful! Hang on!” Lexa yelped as they maneuvered into the bathroom.

“That hurts, Babe!” Clarke whined. 

“I’m sorry! Stop moving! I’m trying to use my left hand and I’m drunk and you’re squirming,” Lexa giggled.

“I am not squirming!” Clarke squirmed. Lexa responded by wrapping Clarke into the hug that got them in trouble in the first place, then backed Clarke into the sink with accidental drunk force. Clarke gasped against Lexa’s neck. “Lexa, what are you doing?” Her voice changed. There was something small and sweet in it that Lexa had never heard before.

Clarke was always the one in control of anything physical. Lexa’s strength took her by surprise in the best way.

“I’m using the mirror behind you,” Lexa said evenly. “If you stay right here against me, I can see what I’m doing and I can reach it easier.”

Clarke didn’t have anywhere else to put her hands, so she let them rest around Lexa’s waist. Her face was forced into the crook of Lexa’s neck. If she flinched, Clarke’s lips would touch one of those well-toned shoulders that had been consuming her thoughts.

“You smell good,” Clarke said softly after a few moments of Lexa struggling carefully behind her.

“So do you,” Lexa replied. Her reflection stared back with Clarke’s body wrapped around her. They looked natural together. The image looked right in Lexa’s wine soaked subconscious. Clarke’s hair, the low back dress and exposed skin, Lexa’s tan arms, it was all perfect. “I got it!” Lexa said triumphantly. Her arms lingered around Clarke a little longer than necessary.

“Nice work,” Clarke tipped her head back.

Lexa didn’t move away. They stayed there, fully pressed together, arms around each other. The mirror peeked at Lexa over Clarke’s shoulder showing her a different version of them. The reverse version. The fake version that other people saw.

They looked right.

“You did a good job all night,” Clarke’s words had the soft edges of a late night at a long party. “Very convincing. Bellamy has known me my whole life and he thinks it’s real.”

“I don’t know,” Lexa glanced away quickly to break the spell of holding contact with Clarke’s magnificent eyes. “I think it helps the fake version of us that the real version of us gets along well.”

“Real me thinks that real you is kinda awesome,” Clarke blurted out after a few moments of quietly contemplating Lexa’s complexion. She wanted to eat the shy laugh and lidded eyes that responded. 

“Real me thinks that real you is kind of awesome, too.” Lexa didn’t jump this time when Clarke’s hands slid up her back.

“Fake me wants to kiss you, but real me thinks I shouldn’t,” Clarke whispered as she leaned closer.

“Fake me wants you to, but real me knows you’re right,” Lexa surprised herself by not pulling away.

“Hey! If you haven’t untangled your shit yet, we’re gonna just shave Clarke’s head! People have to pee out here!” Anya banged on the door.

They jumped apart. Lexa cleared her throat loudly and propped her hands safely on her own hips. Clarke put a hand over her mouth to cover her giggles.

“Just a minute!” Lexa snapped back.

“Real me thinks that maybe it’s time for fake us to get out of here and back out to the party before our real friends become real suspicious,” Clarke smirked.

“Real me thinks you’re right,” Lexa nodded and held the door open for Clarke.


	9. And They Fell Asleep Together By Accident!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Clarke and Lexa’s day of travel brings them closer together and lays on more confusion.

“Good morning, Honey,” Lexa smiled as she pulled up to the sidewalk outside of Clarke’s building on Thursday. Clarke stood next to a suitcase with an oversized bag over her shoulder and a scowl on her face. She was dressed for travel in trendy sneakers and a chic black jumpsuit that was unbuttoned to reveal just enough of her cleavage to make Lexa swallow hard. Her hair was down and curly and had the tell-tale flatness on one side of having recently woken up.

“Is it even actually the morning yet?” Clarke grumbled. “I can’t figure out if it’s still late or starting to be early.”

“Technically it is the morning,” Lexa smirked as she popped the trunk and got out of the car. “Which I’m guessing is not your best time?”

“Lexa, we’re staring down twelve hours of travel together and you’re gonna start it off like that? With the way I’m going to be bitching at you by the time we get there, it will be very convincing that we’ve been together for years,” Clarke snapped. She paused as Lexa took a hold of her suitcase. “What are you doing?”

“I’m putting your bags in the car for you,” Lexa stuttered. “I’m sorry. I’m not being fake chivalrous. I’m just being polite.”

“Normally I’d say something witty about not needing to be on right now, but I’m too tired, so I’m going to just let you be a gentlewoman,” Clarke rubbed her eyes as she got settled in the passenger’s seat.

“I remembered we had that conversation this week about how you hate to get up early, so I got you a coffee in case you didn’t have time to make yours,” Lexa nodded her head down to the cup holders between them that housed two large iced coffees.

“Who even are you?” Clarke shook her head.

“What do you mean?” Lexa let out a little laugh.

“What coffee place is even open right now? Why are you so chipper?” Clarke groaned. She took the coffee and sipped with relief, then let out a long, slow moan. “Fuck, that’s the stuff.”

“I always loved the early mornings,” Lexa shrugged, using all of her will power to ignore Clarke’s sexual response to caffeine. “I can get so much done before everyone wakes up and starts bothering me.”

“Ah, yes,” Clarke nodded, a sense of life returning with her coffee. “I do the opposite and I stay up all night so no one can bother me. Which I did last night trying to finish off a bunch of work, and before I knew it, it was two AM and I knew you were coming soon. I’m not even actually sure if I slept or not.”

“Can you sleep on flights?” Lexa asked as she pulled onto the freeway. Clarke liked watching her drive. She was relaxed and moved through LA traffic with confidence and ease.

“I can sleep anywhere, Babe,” Clarke replied. 

They made their way through security uneventfully with the masses. Clarke stumbled behind Lexa as she slid her feet back into her sneakers and shoved her laptop back into her bag. Lexa moved through the airport and all of its natural stresses with a sense of calm. Clarke had started taking extra note of Lexa’s athletic posture and runner’s grace in every move she made. Walking directly behind Lexa in skinny jeans almost wiped away the distaste for the early hour plastered on Clarke’s face.

“Hey, I have to pee. Can you take my bag and go find us two seats at the bar?” Clarke nodded to a spot near their gate.

“You want a drink right now?” Lexa yelped as Clarke heaved her bag into Lexa’s arms.

“Tell me with a straight face you don’t have a drink every time you’re in an airport,” Clarke scoffed. “I’ll be right back.”

Lexa took the bag and the instructions and found two seats on the end of the bar.

Despite spending almost every free moment of the week texting and talking, they hadn’t talked about the close call in Octavia’s bathroom when fake started getting a little too real. As tense as the faux affection and kisses for science and touches for dramatic effect made Lexa, she struggled with the fact that she couldn’t stop thinking about Clarke.

The real Clarke.

She hoped Clarke would be touchy when she didn’t need to be. She was ready and waiting for kisses stolen under the guise of practice. She craved Clarke’s touch again. Lexa jumped as a hand settled gently on the back of her neck.

“Alright, what are we working with?” Clarke sighed as she sat next to Lexa and leaned close to share the menu. She left the affectionate hand on Lexa’s back and punctuated it with a few scratches. When the bartender took the menu and their order, Clarke didn’t move away. “I’m sorry that I was shitty this morning,” Clarke sighed.

“You weren’t shitty,” Lexa brightened. She could feel her smile changing when Clarke was around. It felt too good and she knew she shouldn’t be admitting it to herself while Clarke was sitting so close fluffing up her flat curls and glowing with excitement as a bloody mary showed up in front of her.

“Lex, one of the best things about you is how honest you are. It would be a real shame if you started lying to me now,” Clarke cocked a brow at Lexa who wasn’t sure what to do with the statement.

“Clarke,” Lexa, dismayed, took a sip of her drink while she sorted out what to say. “I’m far from honest. The only reason we’re friends is because I’m in the middle of a gigantic con that you agreed to be part of.”

“That’s not the ONLY reason,” Clarke rolled her eyes.

“What?” Lexa stammered.

“Maybe that’s how and why we met, but we’re friends for all kinds of reasons,” Clarke waved a blasé hand. “You’re smart and you’re kind. You work extremely hard and you care even harder for your friends. I love that,” Clarke took another long pull from her cocktail and Lexa scratched her chin and nervously looked away. “You’re so much fun to be with. You never judge anyone about anything. No one has made me laugh like you can in a very long time,” Clarke paused to take a breath. “You’re fucking great.”

“You’re not so bad yourself,” Lexa said quietly into her drink. 

“Will you just accept my apology for being shitty so I can resolve my guilt over it and we can have a fun day traveling together?” Clarke held her drink up expectantly.

“I accept your apology,” Lexa nodded firmly and clinked her glass against Clarke’s. “To us.”

“To us,” Clarke’s smile crept over the line from friendly to flirty and neither of them knew what to do with it when Lexa’s did the same.

“I, uh, I have quite a bit of work to do on the flight,” Lexa stammered. “So I don’t know how much fun I’ll be.”

“We’ll see,” Clarke’s coy smile never left the room.

Later that morning, Lexa sat in the aisle seat deep into reports on her laptop somewhere over the southwest. Clarke, slightly buzzed and sipping on an inflight mimosa, sat in the middle seat chatting with the passenger beside her. The window seat was occupied by a woman in her sixties that had just visited her first grandchild and had a lot to say. Lexa smiled to herself as she listened to Clarke egging the woman on to show her pictures and tell her absolutely everything.

“Shoot, are we going on too much and bothering your friend? Is she trying to work?” Clarke’s new friend asked in a hushed voice that wasn’t worth the effort in the tight airplane seats.

“All she ever does is work. She could afford to be bothered a little more often,” Clarke shared a conspiratorial smile with her grandmother pal and shot Lexa a pair of eyes that danced too close to the promiscuous edge.

“I’m perfectly fun when I need to be,” Lexa grinned down into her keyboard as she fired off emails.

“She’s not wrong about that,” Clarke boldly reached out and took Lexa’s hand off the keyboard and threaded their fingers together. Lexa glanced down at their hands, back at her screen, then confusedly to their seatmate.

“I see you two are very good friends,” the new grandma smiled even wider. 

“Can I get any of you something to drink?” the stewardess appeared beside them.

“Yes!” Lexa gulped.

Clarke rattled off most of the fake relationship in all of its imaginary, detailed glory to the woman beside her. Lexa loosened up after reasoning with herself that more practice couldn’t hurt, and they would likely never see this woman again. Clarke’s hands started doing that thing they did and naturally found all of the perfect spots to touch and hold and make Lexa’s body react.

Lexa eventually got back to work somewhere over the Midwest. The new grandmother decided to rest, and Clarke had her eyes glued to a Pixar movie on the headrest in front of her with a forgotten fake flirty hand resting on Lexa’s thigh. As Lexa started pouring over the monthly reports from her new teams, she felt Clarke’s head drop onto her shoulder.

She was sound asleep.

“Clarke,” Lexa whispered gently. 

“What?” Clarke murmured.

“You’re sleeping on me. I need my arm to work,” Lexa felt that smile again. The real one. The one she couldn’t explain that was too wide for something as simple as someone looking damn sweet while they slept.

“I need your arm to sleep,” Clarke yawned. “It’s time for a break.”

“I just took a break,” Lexa hissed.

“We’re on vacation, babe,” Clarke smirked, her eyes still closed and her temple heavy on Lexa’s shoulder. “You never make time for me.”

“You are absurd,” Lexa sighed. “Fine. Come here,” Lexa nudged Clarke up so she could slide her arm behind her. Clarke settled into Lexa’s side without ever opening her eyes. “Is that better?” Lexa asked. Clarke fit perfectly beside her. Lexa’s hand resting on Clarke’s shoulder touched the ends of Clarke’s curls and she couldn’t stop herself from running a lock between her fingers.

“Yes,” Clarke’s lips twitched up into a shy smile. “Don’t you think so?”

“Yes,” Lexa replied, resting her chin on top of Clarke’s head and scrolling her reports with her free hand. 

Lexa didn’t know when she nodded off, but when the message came to prepare for landing, she snapped awake. Clarke was completely snuggled against her and it felt too wonderful to wake her. Lexa’s laptop sat forgotten and cold in front of her. New Grandma gave Lexa a knowing look when Clarke didn’t stir. 

“Hey, Clarke,” Lexa nudged her with care. “You need to get up. We’re landing and we need to make our transfer.”

“Booo,” Clarke whined. She sat up and stretched her back, arching her chest forward in that damn jumpsuit. Lexa busied herself with her laptop and her bag to avoid staring.

The landing was smooth, and with some hustling and gripes from Clarke, they made their connecting flight to Portland, Maine just in time. The trip from New York to Maine was brief. Lexa was thankful she wouldn’t have to pretend she was fine with all of the snuggling. There wasn’t enough time.

The baggage carousel went smoothly, and they made their way through the small airport to pick up Lexa’s rental car. Lexa chugged another coffee knowing she still had an hour drive through winding Maine roads before their travel was complete, and now she was in a varied state of out of sorts.

“Miss Woods, I’m sorry, but it appears there was a mistake and we rented the car that you reserved to someone else,” the young man behind the desk was starting to sweat. It was 7 pm on a Thursday in late summer in Portland, Maine and the rental desk was a mess.

“So, what are we going to do here?” Lexa asked, unconsciously standing up straighter. Her work voice started sneaking in and Clarke perked up. “You must have another vehicle.”

“We are very low on vehicles at the moment. If you could please just allow me to see what we have available,” he trailed off as his fingers flew across his keyboard. “How many passengers?” He asked, looking over the monitor at Lexa and Clarke.

“Just the two of us,” Lexa pointed at Clarke beside her.

“I think we have something that will work for you,” he sighed with relief. “Can you drive a manual transmission?”

“I can work with that,” Lexa replied, working to remain calm. 

“It’s in a different class, but we’ll waive any fees and only charge you for the original sedan. If you want to wait out front, one of my associates will be right around with it.” He handed Lexa her license back and pointed to the doors.

“Hey,” Clarke said quietly. They each pulled a suitcase behind them. Clarke reached with her free hand for Lexa’s. She could see the frustration percolating below Lexa’s skin. “I’m sorry this is aggravating.”

“It’s fine,” Lexa muttered. “I hate it when stupid small stuff goes wrong that shouldn’t. I’m sure it will all be...”

They were interrupted as a shiny, bright red mustang convertible pulled up in front of them. One of the rental car guys hopped out to greet them.

“Alexandria Woods?” He asked with a smile. Lexa’s jaw fell. Clarke’s mouth opened with glee.

“That’s me,” Lexa cocked her head to the side, confused.

“No friggin, way, Babe!” Clarke gawked and squeezed Lexa’s hand tighter.

“I’m sorry about the mix up. This is all we had left. I hope it will work for you two,” He handed Lexa her keys and her paperwork. 

“I think it’ll work just fine,” Clarke grinned at him.

“Enjoy your trip, Mrs. Woods,” he grinned back at Clarke. The air left Lexa’s chest at the mistake of Clarke being her wife. She hadn’t heard anyone referred to as ‘Mrs. Woods’ since she was a little kid.

“Lexa!” Clarke squealed once the guy was gone. “Holy shit! Would you look at this thing?”

“Beats the pants off the Toyota Camry I reserved,” Lexa shrugged and started loading their bags into the trunk. “This kind of thing never happens to me.”

“Looks like we’re doing everything right since the universe rewarded you with this magical convertible and that dude thought I was your wife,” Clarke settled into her seat.

“You didn’t think that was a little presumptuous?” Lexa got into the driver’s seat and acquainted herself with the vehicle.

“No,” Clarke dug her sunglasses out of her bag. “Considering that’s exactly what we want people to think. I’d say it’s another win.”

“We don’t need that guy to think that,” Lexa scowled.

“As far as I’m concerned, we’ve been on since we left New York. Anyone on that flight could be going to this thing. Maybe the people behind us in the Volvo are. That SUV in front of us full of girls in their mid-twenties also might be headed to the same wedding. So why don’t you chill the fuck out and enjoy your free convertible with your girlfriend?” Clarke said firmly.

“There’s that bossy streak,” Lexa sighed.

“Hey,” Clarke turned to Lexa and leaned over the stick shift.

“What?” Lexa snapped and turned to face her. Clarke surprised her with a soft and deliberate kiss.

“Don’t call me bossy,” Clarke smiled snidely as she pulled away. “Fake me and real me both hate it.”

“Noted,” Lexa replied, but hadn’t unclenched her body yet. “What was that for?”

“What was what for?” Clarke asked. She fiddled with the radio and was completely unphased.

“Do you think we need to be convincing enough that you need to just kiss me right here?” Lexa’s back was stiff. She’d been thinking about kissing Clarke every few minutes since the last time she did. She’d been both dreading and craving the next opportunity and she was disappointed that it snuck up on her unprepared.

“Who cares what it’s for. Maybe I’m your girlfriend and that means I can kiss you whenever I want. Maybe I think you’re still too tense to pull this off and you need a few more surprises to look natural. Maybe I just felt like it. Whatever the reason is, this is your party, so you better act like you like it every time or you’re going to get yourself caught,” Clarke shrugged.

“You better act like you like it every time,” Lexa grumbled and took a deep breath and willed her body to relax.


	10. And There Was Only One Bed!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After a long day of travel, they arrive at their destination and there is, in fact, only one bed.

Clarke had only been to Maine once and it was in the winter. She was thankful for the accidental convertible so she could take in the smells. Everything was so green, so lush and so alive. The roadways out to the inn were winding and rural. They passed farms and forests. The color of the sky was something they didn’t have in California or New York. The shade of blue was so rich she could taste it.

It was hard to talk in a convertible. Clarke picked out a playlist and sat back to take everything in. The evening light was perfect as they drove north. Despite the picturesque scenery on all sides, her eyes kept finding their way to Lexa.

Lexa’s nimble hand on the gear shift. Lexa’s strong jaw line as she grinned when Clarke pointed out a baby calf in a field of cows. The way her legs moved as her feet glided fluidly over the pedals. She was disappointed that Lexa had sunglasses on regardless of how damn cool she looked. Clarke wished she could see those green eyes framed by all of the greenery around them.

She’d be lying if she said she didn’t enjoy every kiss and every touch. While all of it was ultimately fake, none of it wasn’t without threads of genuine want. Clarke had been wrestling with herself all week about whether or not she was crossing lines. It was hard to tell if your fake partner wanted to be with you for real when everything that was supposed to be for show came too naturally and felt too good.

On the one hand, they knew each other with a specific intimacy that made it feel like they were old friends. On the other, she and Lexa were technically almost strangers.

Since Clarke couldn’t sort it out for herself, she couldn’t dream of broaching the topic with Lexa who had just started to officially loosen up and settle into whatever it was that they had.

“We’re almost there,” Lexa said as she turned the volume down on the radio. “It should be right at the end of this road.” 

They turned onto a winding dirt road and Clarke became acutely aware that they had not discussed the almost kiss in Octavia’s bathroom, and now she couldn’t think of anything to think about other than the exact scent of Lexa’s perfume while she untangled her watch from her hair. Clarke hadn’t decided if she regretted not going for it or regretted saying that she wanted to. If it was better or worse that Lexa agreed with her.

“Hey, can you pull over for a sec before we get there?” Clarke asked. She tried to quell the urgency in her voice, but the past hour of thinking about nothing other than the woman beside her gave her vocal cords other plans.

“Is everything okay?” Lexa asked. She pulled the car over and popped the break so she could give Clarke her full attention.

“I thought we should take a quick second since the minute we drive onto that property, this fake thing between us has to become very permanent,” Clarke pointed between the two of them.

“I don’t want this to come out wrong, but I feel like there’s something between us that’s real enough that we’re going to be just fine,” Lexa said with a renewed confidence and a little shrug. 

It was a turn on.

“What real thing that’s between us?” Clarke stripped her tone of hopeful notes.

“This is a bizarre and intense friendship we have,” Lexa shrugged with that one shy shoulder again.

“Right,” Clarke nodded. “You’re right.”

“We came all this way,” Lexa mustered up a smile that passed for enthusiastic. “Might as well see it through, right?”

“Are you sure? This is the last chance to drop me off somewhere else and not do this,” Clarke sighed. She wanted to give Lexa the out, but she prayed she wouldn’t take it.

“Clarke,” Lexa softened. Her teeth were perfect and her smile was too gorgeous. “I don’t know what this is. I’ve never had a friend like you before, but that doesn’t mean I don’t love it. We’ve practiced. We’ve trained. We’re ready.”

“You’re sure you’re good?” Clarke asked sincerely. 

“I think I’m as good as I’m going to get,” Lexa chuckled. Clarke laughed with her. “Ready?”

“Ready,” Clarke leaned over and kissed Lexa’s cheek, giving her one more chance to wince before they were in front of anyone else.

But she didn’t.

Lexa’s shoulders relaxed instead. Her body language became confident and cool as she maneuvered the little sports car around potholes and fallen tree branches along the lake. It was the result Clarke had been aiming for all along, but now that it happened, it came with a mixed bag of feelings.

It was a crisp Maine evening. The sky sang with oranges and pinks. They rounded the corner onto the Bear Mountain Inn property and both gasped. A sprawling, old, but newly refurbished, inn with a wraparound porch and old-fashioned trim was the main event with a few smaller and newer homes behind it. The white paint on the buildings and fences was fresh. A large, white event tent was popped up in the yard. The perfectly manicured lawn went on for acres where it met the shimmering lake and the woods. 

“Damn,” Clarke exhaled as she took it in. 

“It’s beautiful here,” Lexa did the same as she parked the car. Sucking down the last bit of sunset left their backs to Aden and all of his friends on the porch watching them arrive.

“Yo, Forester, is that your boss?” Clarke heard one of the younger guys on the porch hiss when Lexa cut the engine.

“Here we go,” Clarke quirked a brow at Lexa.

“Hey, Clarke, wait,” Lexa grabbed Clarke’s hand before she could get out of the car.

“Yes?” Clarke asked, startled.

“I don’t know if I ever properly thanked you for all of this,” Lexa got out through one of those new smiles that had a mind of its own. The beaming grin in return from Clarke made Lexa’s stomach skip rope. “Thank you. Really.”

“The pleasure’s been all mine, Lexa,” Clarke squeezed her hand. 

“Damn, Woods! I know you always do everything in style, but son of a bitch, a mustang?!” Aden leapt off the porch and bounded across the yard towards them. Lexa gave Clarke a conspiratorial glance before finally getting out of the car.

“Well, Sir, it was simply all they had available,” Lexa held her arms open. “Get over here. It’s been forever.”

“It’s so good to see you! I’ve missed you so friggin’ much!” he squished Lexa into a hug so tight that she coughed.

“I’ve missed you, too, Buddy,” Lexa gave his shoulder a squeeze as he pulled away. “It’s an honor to be part of this weekend with you.”

“Are you kidding me?! All of this is because of you!” Aden threw his hands in the air excitedly.

“I knew you were a big shot, Babe, but I didn’t know you could control forces of nature at that job of yours,” Clarke perked up in her flirtiest fake girlfriend voice. 

“Very funny,” Lexa sighed. She disguised the deep breath preparing herself for what came next with garden variety sarcasm. “Aden, this is my partner, Clarke,” Lexa gestured to Clarke. “Honey, this is the man of the hour.”

“Holy shit, oh my god,” Aden wiped his hands on his shorts and then reached out to shake. “Clarke, I can’t believe you were able to make it! I have heard so much about you. This is so, so exciting.”

“You have, have you?” Clarke shot Lexa a look that was met with a shrug.

“I had a call with Anya this week and she was just going on and on about how nice it has been to have you around more now that work has calmed down for you!” Aden was so enthusiastic that Clarke couldn’t contain a light laugh.

“That sounds like Anya,” Lexa glanced away at the lake to hide her discomfort.

“Why don’t we get your bags and show you to your room? I hope you’ll come down and have a few beers on the porch with us, but I get it if you’re totally wiped,” Aden’s hopeful eyes were like a little boy begging for a new toy. “It’s just me and the guys. Emily and her friends are staying in the bigger house in the back and we’re sort of keeping it separate tonight.”

“Well, we don’t need to interrupt,” Lexa began.

“Are you kidding me?! You’re a fucking legend. These tools should be so lucky,” Aden rolled his eyes and gestured to the group of a dozen young men smoking cigars and drinking canned beer out of coolers in Adirondack and rocking chairs all over the front porch.

“I know we try not to talk about work too much at home, Lex, but I get the sense that you’re hiding something from me,” Clarke playfully nudged Lexa in the side.

“Guys! Hey! Let’s go! Take their bags up for them!” Aden clapped his hands and a few of the boys hopped off the porch.

“Aden, that’s really not necessary,” Lexa tried.

“Lexa,” He held his hands up to stop her. “It’s literally the least I can do.”

“Why don’t you go ahead and lead the way?” Clarke gestured for him to go first, then linked her arm through Lexa’s elbow and followed behind.

“This is your room right here at the top of the stairs,” Aden led them through the inn. They passed a communal dining space, a few sitting rooms and some of the other guest rooms. Most of the interior was exposed wood with high end industrial furnishings that drove home the full Maine experience.

“Aden, this is all really lovely. We’re so happy to be here,” Lexa said sincerely.

“I feel like I’m going to explode already and people just started getting here today. Like, what in the world! All of my favorite people are all going to be in the same place, I just,” he paused and took a deep breath before dropping a hand on Lexa’s shoulder. “I’m so glad you could make it and you accepted my request to be a part of all of this.”

“Of course,” Lexa replied. Clarke watched the look exchanged between them and it warmed her insides. It was a new side of Lexa she hadn’t seen yet. Until now she had been propriety and stern edges. “I’m really proud of you, Aden.”

“Thank you. That means so much coming from you,” he smiled up at her with adoration. “I’ll give you both a minute to get settled, but please, come join me and the guys whenever you’re ready,” He nodded politely before backing out of the room.

“Damn, Lex. Anya said that kid worships you and she was not fucking around,” Clarke said quietly after he left.

“He’s a really, really good guy,” Lexa replied with a little smile. Aden’s friends put the bags near a big bay window with a window seat overlooking the lake. The room was beautiful. Plush, white linens, a huge bathroom with a soaking tub and a walk-in glass shower. Gorgeous refurbished hardwood floors and one of a kind lamps. Sitting chairs, an old school, all wooden dresser and desk.

And one queen sized bed.

“That bed looks fucking deluxe, and after this day of travel, I’m really excited to get in it,” Clarke nodded in approval. “But we should probably get down there before he starts telling too many tall tales about what a fucking legend you are,” Clarke smirked and gave the front hem of Lexa’s shirt a playful tug.

“I’m not a fucking legend!” Lexa snapped as she followed Clarke back down the stairs.

“I heard a bunch of dirty rumors that you were boring,” Clarke called over her shoulder in a sing song voice.

“I’m not boring! Who said I was boring?” Lexa gaped at her. “You’re boring!”

“Oh, Honey, I assure you, I’m a lot of things, but I’m not boring,” Clarke stopped dead to come correct and tossed a murderous eyeroll over her shoulder. Lexa slammed right into her back. They both burst into giggles as Aden came around the corner carrying a case of beer.

“You guys,” he laughed and shook his head at what he took for flirting.

And he was right.

Aden and all of his buddies cheered when they stepped out onto the porch.

“Gentlemen, this is Lexa, my former boss who made me the Grounder employee I am today and trained me to get the promotion that got me the role where I met Emily,” Aden proudly introduced Lexa to the crew of guys. “And this is her amazing partner, Clarke.”

“Which one of you boys has a few cold beers for two women who have been traveling since 4am Los Angeles time?” Clarke rubbed her hands together. The sounds of coolers flying open and bottle caps popping was deafening as every one of the boys offered Clarke a beer immediately. “Amazing,” Clarke took the two bottles closest to her. Lexa looked at her expectantly. “Does anyone have one for Lexa? I need like, five.”

“Unbelievable,” Lexa sarcastically rolled her eyes as she accepted a bottle from one of them.

The evening turned out to be really fun. Aden and his friends were nice guys, all a little nerdy, all very smart, and all very sweet. Lexa sat back and let Clarke talk for both of them since she was so comfortable chatting with strangers. Clarke had them all roaring laughing and hanging on her every word.

It took a turn when Aden started telling tales about Lexa

“No, Clarke, you don’t even know what she used to be like on president’s club trips,” Aden’s face was bright red from the laughter.

“Do go on,” Clarke was sitting on the deck with her feet hanging over the side. She took her shoes off upstairs in the room and was barefoot now. Clarke leaned back between Lexa’s legs who was perched in a chair behind her trying not to react every time Clarke’s shoulders rubbed against her inner thighs. She couldn’t stop herself from rearranging a few of the curls in her lap.

“Lexa, how long ago was Vegas?” Aden squinted up at her from his seat directly next to Clarke. He’d had a ton of beer and couldn’t help but gravitate closer to her.

“Five years ago, maybe?” Lexa sighed and glanced away into the dark yard around them. Little fairy lights and Christmas lights all on solar power flickered on as the night settled in. “It was right before you moved.”

“Clarke,” Aden set his bottle down and talked with both hands. “It always took Anya to get her going, but once we pushed her over the edge, man,” he started laughing before he could finish. “Was it you that spear headed the entire group bringing buffet tables of food out to the pool late at night for skinny dipping?”

“It was Anya, but I helped her so she wouldn’t hurt herself,” Lexa chuckled at the memory. “She always has been and always will be an HR nightmare.”

“Lexa taught me so many things,” He slurred. “Including how to get business drunk.”

“Business drunk?” Clarke turned over her shoulder and cocked a brow at her. “You don’t say?”

“It’s a very important skill!” Lexa laughed.

“Dude, she might’ve taught you about getting business drunk, but you suck at it!” one of the guys punched Aden in the arm. 

“I get drunk so easily,” he stage whispered to Clarke. “I don’t know if you can tell, but I’m actually super drunk right now.”

“Get out!” Clarke tousled his hair. He cracked up and swatted her away.

“Man, Lexa, I knew when I heard you had a girlfriend that she would obviously be so friggin’ awesome because you are, but you’ve really outdone yourself with this woman,” Aden hiccupped. “Clarke, I’m so happy I finally got to meet you and that you came to my wedding.”

“Me too, dude,” Clarke hugged him around the shoulders with one arm. “However, Lexa and I have been up for one thousand hours and I’m ready to crash. Will we see you boys tomorrow morning?” Clarke pointed her empty beer bottle around her new fan club. They all cheered in response. “Lex, feel free to stay up, but I’m a dead woman walking,” Clarke reached for Lexa’s outstretched hand to help her stand up.

“I would also like to get some sleep,” Lexa followed Clarke into the inn. “Goodnight, guys. Don’t keep him up too late,” she chuckled as Aden slumped over and pumped a fist in the air. “Emily will kill you if he’s a mess.”

“Night!” Clarke called over her shoulder as the old screen door slapped shut behind them. 

Lexa walked up the narrow stairs directly behind Clarke. The numerous, hefty craft beers influenced the path of her eyes to trace the perfect curves of Clarke’s waist, hips and ass just inches in front of her.

“Those guys are adorable,” Clarke chuckled as she pushed open their door. “He’s absolutely obsessed with you.”

“I think you’re taking home the prize for the fan favorite,” Lexa laughed as she dug through her suitcase for something to sleep in. Clarke unbuttoned her jumpsuit without ceremony and it dropped to the floor around her feet.

“I usually do,” Clarke grunted as she heaved herself in just her bra and panties onto the bed. “These sheets are GOOD!” She stretched like a cat as long as she could and become one full, pristine, beautiful fucking arch from fingertips to toes. Lexa felt sweat on her palms instantly. “Maine has delicious BEER and I am TIRED!” Clarke’s eyes fell closed as she nuzzled into the pile of pillows.

“Maine does have some delicious beer,” Lexa stammered.

“Lexa,” Clarke’s voice was muffled by the pillows.

“Yes?” Lexa straightened up. She had running shorts and a tank top in her hands with her shirt off and her jeans unbuttoned. She faced away from Clarke to catch her breath.

“I can feel you freaking out from there. Do not even consider suggesting sleeping on the floor or anything ridiculous. Just be normal and get into bed with me and go to sleep. You must be exhausted,” Clarke said flatly. Several of her syllables got lost in her pillow.

“Are you s-“

“Yes, I’m sure. Get in here,” Clarke scooted to one side to make room for Lexa.

The few inches between them felt like miles of molten lava. They could feel each other’s body heat, each other’s presence and each other’s breath. Clarke’s skin was too perfect and too available right there on display. Lexa laid carefully, straight as a ruler with her hands folded on her stomach next to Clarke’s back.

“I had a lot of fun with you today,” Clarke said quietly. Lexa wasn’t sure if it had been a few moments or a few hours. She could hear her heartbeat thundering in her ears. “And it wasn’t fake. The fun was real.”

“Yeah?” Lexa perked up.

“Yeah,” Clarke snuggled into her pillows and yawned. “You’re so nice to me.”

“You’re easy to be nice to,” Lexa shrugged. She fixed her gaze on the ceiling fan above them to keep her eyes from strolling across the bed to Clarke’s messy curls on the next pillow.

“I’m really not,” Clarke replied. “But you always do it anyway.”

“Well,” Lexa tried to stop the words from coming out of her mouth, but they were surfing a massive wave of high ABV beers, a confusing couple of weeks and a very long day. “That’s because I like being around you.”

“I like being around you, too, Lexa,” Clarke yawned again. “Sweet dreams.”

“Goodnight, Clarke,” Lexa let loose one of the hard to slow down smiles at the ceiling.


	11. And The Pressure Is Mounting!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lexa’s stress level skyrockets and she’s about to burst.

Lexa slept hard. The traveling, the work stress and the pressure of constantly pretending something was real that she wished in a complicated way wasn’t fake took the wind out of her sails. Her dream was so vivid that she could smell Clarke’s hair. She opened her eyes to a wall of blond curls and held back a gasp before she clamped them shut again. After counting to five, she opened them.

The luscious locks still filled her view.

The sun was low in the sky and pastel pinks and yellows crept across the bedspread. Lexa squinted in the early morning light and pieced together where she was. Her mouth tasted like too many beers the night before and the companion headache came sauntering in slowly. She was in her underwear, but she was warm.

And she was wrapped around Clarke who slept soundly beside her.

“Holy shit,” Lexa whispered. She froze with panic.

Clarke didn’t budge. She was curled up on her side. Their legs were threaded together. Clarke held fast to Lexa’s hand on the arm wrapped around her. Lexa couldn’t remember moving, couldn’t remember enveloping Clarke’s body with her own, but now that she had, she couldn’t figure out how to undo it without waking Clarke up and bringing attention to it.

She also didn’t want to stop.

Clarke’s skin had the warmth of home and was softer than it looked. She was pressed against Lexa and every ounce of her fit perfectly into each and every bow and arch of Lexa’s body. She dragged her toes up Lexa’s calf as she started to stir. Lexa slammed her eyes closed in panic. With the grace of a safe cracker, she loosened her fingers from Clarke’s grip and carefully, regretfully and begrudgingly disentangled their bodies.

With an intense need to be anywhere else as quickly as possible, Lexa silently collected her running clothes from her suitcase and dressed quietly. She turned around for her phone on the nightstand and was met with Clarke in her sleeping, sprawling, almost naked glory stretched out on the bed.

“Jesus Christ,” Lexa hissed and spun back around. Clarke’s image was burned on the back of her eyelids. She hurried into the hallway and leaned against the closed door, shut her eyes and took the longest, slowest, deepest breath.

“What’s up, Lexa!” One of the young guys from the night before appeared to be just now going to bed. She jumped with a start and checked the time on her phone.

“Hey,” she nodded politely. It was seven in the morning. He tripped on the stairs. She scurried past him and out on to the silent porch. Another of Aden’s friends was passed out on the porch swing. 

Looking to put distance between herself and Clarke’s majestic, semi-exposed, incredible breasts, Lexa put in her ear buds and took off running.

The property was even better in person than it looked online. There were trails through the woods that looped around the lake. Lexa’s feet took her to the tree line to find an escape.

Things were going to get worse before they got better. More and more people were going to arrive all day. She had to give an anticipated toast tonight. She had to parade Clarke around. Her father was coming. She knew it was all her fault, all her idea and she had put herself in this situation, but it was just so much. She could admit that, but she hadn’t planned to have such a hard time holding up her end of the bargain not to fall in love.

Love was a little strong. Lust, maybe, but definitely something real and undeniable.

Clarke was impossibly wonderful. She was infectious and contagious. Lexa enjoyed the difference that laughing with Clarke so frequently was making in her daily life. As she skipped past rocks and trees toward the lake, Lexa wondered how on earth she was expected to simply be friends with this amazing woman that had completely consumed her life in the finest way from the moment she entered it.

Were they supposed to just get drinks and not hold hands? Just sit there next to each other at the dive bar with all the usual suspects talking about nothing and not share adoring looks and sneak affection? How the fuck could she be expected to stop the absolute freight train hauling relentless grins and unstoppable hands?

Maybe the reason her attraction felt like a full force wrecking ball headed for her humdrum life was because she wasn’t supposed to be feeling it. Couldn’t talk about it. Couldn’t act on it. Wasn’t supposed to acknowledge the existence of the tsunami of sexy, hilarious, confident water about to mow down the island of inner peace she had cultivated over the last five years.

Six miles later, covered in sweat and full of fresh anxiety, Lexa was back at the inn just as Anya pulled up.

“Would you fucking believe that bullshit airport? I reserved a friggin’ SUV and got saddled with this!” she gestured at a gray Toyota Camry parked next to Lexa’s temporary sex machine. “Small town charm, my ass. It’s incompetence, is what it is.”

“Good morning, Anya,” Lexa panted as she took out her headphones. “How was your flight?”

“Redeyes are the worst. I’m still mad they made me work yesterday and fly out last night. The groom better be thankful I covered for his ass,” Anya scowled and popped the trunk for her bags.

“I do believe the excitement of the most wonderful day of his life will eclipse your distress,” Lexa stretched and dismissed Anya’s attitude.

“Sorry. You know I hate overnight flights. They make me pissy,” Anya sighed.

“What doesn’t?” Lexa shot her a cheeky look.

“Breakfast buffets and free booze,” Anya yanked up the handle on her suitcase. “Point me at it.”

“Give me one of those,” Lexa softened and reached for Anya’s carry on. 

“How was your run? This place is off the charts gorgeous,” Anya took it in as she followed Lexa into the inn. The staff had a full breakfast out in the dining room with bottles of champagne and juice for mimosas.

“It was really nice. Hillier than we’re used to, but a great workout. Maybe we can go together tomorrow morning. There’s a nice loop around the lake,” Lexa replied.

“Let’s not make any promises to each other. I brought my shoes, but the next thirty-six hours is the only whiff of vacation I’m getting for the next six months, so I’m getting wrecked this weekend,” Anya sighed as she poured bubbles into a coffee mug and passed on the orange juice. “Did you eat yet? Wanna join me?”

“I’d love to,” Lexa made herself a plate, but filled her mug with coffee instead. She and Anya found a table by the windows so they could take in the lake and rolling lawns. Some guests were starting to arrive and a few of Aden’s friends that had actually gone to bed were milling around in their gym shorts with cans of trashy beer while filling their plates with bacon and waffles.

“Where’s Clarke?” Anya asked through a mouthful of food.

“She’s sleeping,” Lexa kept her eyes on her plate in an attempt not to give away the depth of the confusion she was drowning in.

“How’s that going?” Anya swigged from her mug of sparkling wine. “Oh, fuck yeah. That’s gonna do the trick,” she nodded before going back for more.

“It’s fine,” Lexa shrugged.

“Yeah?” Anya cocked a brow at her brief and obvious lie.

“Technically, yes, everything is fine. No one knows it’s fake and everyone is in love with her,” Lexa scowled.

“Including you, right?” Anya smirked. Lexa dropped an elbow on the table and hid her face in response.

“You’re the most obnoxious when you’re right,” Lexa sighed.

“Lucky for you, I’ve been awake for thirty hours and I’m feeling particularly considerate,” Anya smiled warmly and reached across the table to give Lexa’s forearm a squeeze. “How are you really holding up, Big Shoots?”

“Who the fuck knows,” Lexa leaned back in her chair and stretched.

“Well, wait,” Anya paused to cram an entire strip of bacon into her mouth. “Is it mutual?”

“Who can tell?! There’s so much fake shit going on that I wouldn’t know!” Lexa hissed.

“Did you TALK to her?” Anya asked.

“And what exactly would I even say?” Lexa lowered her voice. “Hey, I know we both promised not to fall in love, but you’re beautiful and you’re clever and you’re amazing and I totally blew it, so like, do you wanna have dinner with me later? Give me a fucking break, Anya.”

“I don’t know,” Anya shrugged and gave a wince of despair that her mug was already empty. “She seems pretty cool. I’m sure you could work it out. I think she likes you,” Anya winked at Lexa and clicked her teeth.

“What?” Lexa perked up.

“So do all of her friends,” Anya dumped syrup all over her waffles. “I had beers with Raven the other day. She’s equal parts concerned that you’re both in over your heads and thrilled that maybe both of you are gonna let yourselves be happy. It might not be as dire as you think.”

“How can you tell? She’s always acting,” Lexa sighed and finally took a grouchy bite of her breakfast.

“No, she’s not,” Anya shook her head confidently. “Do you want me to ask her?”

“Absolutely not!” Lexa yelped. “Promise me you won’t.”

“Fine,” Anya sulked.

“Say the words,” Lexa demanded. “I know you and your dicey semantics too well for that.”

“I promise I won’t ask your fake girlfriend if she wants to be your real girlfriend,” Anya rolled her eyes.

“Thank you,” Lexa hung her head.

“Hey, hey! If it isn’t my lovely daughter and her darling best friend!” A deep male voice boomed behind them. Lexa lifted her panicked gaze up to Anya who mouthed ‘I’m so sorry.’

“Dad,” Lexa stood up and turned around slowly with the mannerisms of facing a firing squad. “Hello.”

“You’re not too cool to give your old man a hug, are you?” he held his arms open.

“I just finished running. I’m pretty sweaty,” Lexa said curtly.

“Sweetpea, I used to wipe your ass. I don’t care about that. Get over here,” He wrapped his arms around her and she stiffened. Lexa relented and listlessly hugged him back.

“Anya, you simply get lovelier every time I see you,” he beamed at her.

“And closer to finally aging out of your target demographic,” Anya muttered into her empty mug.

“What’s that?” He asked.

“It’s nice to see you again, Mr. Woods,” Anya faked a sour smile at him.

“Anya, please, it’s been ages. Call me Alex,” he poured on some baby boomer charm that made Anya’s skin crawl.

“I think maybe no thanks on that,” Anya kept her fake face on. He quickly lost interest. “Lexa, weren’t you just making a plate to bring up to Clarke?” Anya nodded at the buffet and easy exit for her best friend.

“Clarke?” Lexa’s father glanced back and forth between Anya and Lexa. “Alexandria! Have you finally come around to-“

“Clarke’s a woman,” Lexa deadpanned.

“And she’s hot,” Anya jumped in.

“I do not need your help with this,” Lexa said through gritted teeth at Anya who shrugged in response.

“Well,” Alex said, filling the air with uncomfortable silence and his intrusive presence. “Denise is getting us checked in, so I’ll leave you to your morning. What are you doing for lunch, Kiddo? Why don’t you and Clarke join me? I’d love to meet your…guest.”

“She’s her girlfriend,” Anya piped up.

“You simply do not quit, do you?” Lexa snapped at her.

“You and your girlfriend, then!” Alex corrected himself. “Why don’t we meet in the tavern at one? My treat.”

“I’ll have to check with-“

“See you then, Lexie!” He called as he left, refusing to give her the chance to say no.

“I fucking hate it when he calls you Lexie,” Anya said after they both watched him go.

“I hate it when anyone calls me that,” Lexa muttered.

“I’m gonna fill this coffee cup up with wine again. Do you want one?” Anya asked hopefully.

“Yes, please,” Lexa dropped back into her chair and closed her eyes with dread.

With some bubbly confidence and a few more words of encouragement from Anya, Lexa made her way upstairs juggling a plate of food, a cup of actual coffee and a mimosa made in the largest cup she could get her hands on. Anya’s room by some cruel coincidence was directly across the hall and she followed Lexa up. 

“Honey? Are you decent?” Lexa joked before opening the door. Clarke sat up in bed with the sheets across her chest. Anya happened to glance up at the same moment.

“Hey, Anya!” Clarke brightened. The sight of Clarke’s clothes on the floor and her lack of clothes in bed set a smirk in progress that rose up from Anya’s toes.

“Good morning, Clarke,” Anya grinned and took a big swig from her coffee mug of bubbles. “I’m right across the hall if you need anything,” Anya nodded at her door and dragged her bags in. 

“I thought you might want some breakfast,” Lexa busied herself with the plate so she wouldn’t have to look up at Clarke’s rudely blue eyes hungrily scanning her offerings.

“You know me so well, Sweetheart,” Clarke sighed with delight.

“The mug on the left is coffee and the other is a mimosa. I wasn’t sure what mood you’d be in,” Lexa took a seat in a chair furthest from the bed. Her phone dinged and she glanced down at a message from Anya reading ‘Boy are you FUCKED’ and dismissed it.

“How was your run?” Clarke asked with genuine interest as she dug into her food.

“It was great. There are some interesting trails all around the property if you want to take a walk down to the lake later on,” Lexa offered.

“That sounds nice,” Clarke nodded in approval. “I think I’m going to check out that magical tub in the bathroom after I eat this if you don’t mind. What time do we need to be presentable?”

“So, about that,” Lexa rubbed the ache out of her forehead gently.

“What’s up? Everything okay?” Clarke asked as she sipped her coffee.

“I ran into my father downstairs,” Lexa flicked her gaze up. Clarke’s eyes popped open.

“Oh my god, Lexa, how was that?” Clarke sat up and didn’t notice her sheet starting to droop showing off her bra.

“Anya was with me, so it was brief, but he didn’t give me the chance to say no to having lunch with him,” Lexa replied with disdain.

“Do you want me to go with you?” Clarke asked hopefully. She brushed some crumbs off of her hands back onto the plate. “Unless you don’t want me to intrude. But I’m happy to go with you for moral support!”

“Your presence was specifically requested,” Lexa winced.

“Well, great!” Clarke held her hands up in triumph and the sheet slunk down around her waist. “I can be very distracting when I put my mind to it.”

Lexa didn’t have the wherewithal to tell her she was doing a bang-up job in the current moment of being excruciatingly distracting.

“We need to be down in the tavern at one,” Lexa cleared her throat and pretended to involve herself in checking the time on her phone in order to get Clarke’s chest out of her line of view.

“Plenty of time,” Clarke waved a hand and picked up a waffle with her hands and bit into it. “Give me the rundown on your dad so I know what to avoid and where I can steer him away from anything you don’t want to talk about. I know you said he’s a total puke, but give me some details.”

“He’s generally dishonest and full of himself and has a taste for women much younger than he is,” Lexa reached down to untie her shoes to keep Clarke’s body productively out of her sight line. “I don’t know who his girlfriend Denise is, but my guess is that she’s our age and I know she’s Emily’s cousin.”

“Gross, I can totally work with that,” Clarke nodded. “What does he do for work?”

“The last time I talked to him, he was a financial advisor. He’s into his money. He likes to talk business to make people feel small,” Lexa carried on.

“I’m a dark horse in that category. Everyone thinks I’m dumb because I’m pretty, but my business is actually wildly successful and I’ve been smart about it from the jump,” Clarke tipped her mimosa mug in Lexa’s direction. “I don’t know if you know this, and by the way all these kids have been treating you, it hasn’t been a trope in Anya’s pranks, but if my real job is true in our fake relationship, I’m probably the bread winner.”

“Maybe I’ll announce my retirement later and stay home and be your trophy wife,” Lexa cracked a smile.

“You could. I’m doing even better now that I’m not paying for my shitty ex-husband’s passion projects,” Clarke rolled her eyes. “You wanna go to France this spring? My treat, Sugarbear.”

“I hate Sugarbear,” Lexa wrinkled her nose.

“I’m just testing some stuff out. Give me a break, it’s early,” Clarke downed the rest of the coffee. “He sounds like typical sleaze. Any topics to avoid?”

“Not really. He’s wildly inappropriate, so prepare to be offended,” Lexa got up to sort through her suitcase for something to wear. 

“My skin is pretty thick, Pumpkin,” Clarke moved her empty plate and cup away so she could focus on her mimosa.

“Why don’t you just stick to ‘babe’ and not make any of this worse than it needs to be,” Lexa sighed.

“I’m sorry,” Clarke’s voice shrank behind her. “I can ditch my fake pet names and just use your name if that’s preferred. I can’t help it. Babe is like a nickname now. It’s how I always think of you in my head.” Lexa stiffened at the thought of Clarke thinking about her so often.

“I didn’t mean,” Lexa paused. “I’m sorry. I’m just super stressed out and I’m too tense to function. I cannot believe he’s here and we have to do this.”

“Hey,” Clarke said firmly and waited for Lexa to turn and face her. “We got this, alright? To us,” Clarke held up her cup.

“To us,” Lexa relented.


	12. And The Best Friend Has To Keep Secrets!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A disappointing lunch makes everyone want to burst.

‘Tavern’ was a bit of a misnomer. The quaint property had a large barn for hosting weddings, and a few small rooms shot off that housed a small bar and a few tables with a brief menu the staff could prepare for guests during non-event days. Lexa’s father was sitting by himself reading a book and drinking a draft beer when they walked in.

“There they are!” He stood up to great them. He looked ready for a game of golf in pressed chinos and a polo shirt, and he had the exact smug smile on that Clarke was expecting. He did, however, look a lot like Lexa, and Clarke had a hard time with it. They had the same jawline, the same green eyes, and though his hair was mostly gray now, it was evident that he used to have the chestnut curls Clarke had come to appreciate.

“Hi,” Lexa greeted him first. 

They cleaned up well and Clarke spent extra care on her hair and makeup. She didn’t want to stand out too much and draw unnecessary attention to herself, but she wanted anyone casually scoping out who Lexa was with to be impressed. She wore a black sundress that modestly showed off her figure and she liked how it paired alongside Lexa in a crisp white button down and slim dark dress pants. 

“Dad, this is Clarke, my girlfriend,” Lexa said confidently. She rested a gentle hand at Clarke’s lower back as they approached him.

“Clarke! It is a treat to meet my daughter’s partner,” he held out a hand to shake. “Alexander Woods. Pleased to meet you.”

“Clarke Griffin. Pleasure’s all mine,” Clarke took his hand and returned his business handshake with a mirrored smug smile, and she wondered briefly if he was on to her.

“That’s quite a handshake you have there, Clarke Griffin,” he said. It was unclear if he was impressed or not. 

“When you run a business like mine, you shake a lot of hands of older men who think they’re better than you,” Clarke gave him a toothy grin.

“HA!” he laughed. “I like her, Lexie,” Alex tried to share a conspiratorial joke with his daughter who was repulsed. “What kind of business do you own, Clarke?”

“I own and operate my own branding, design and consulting company,” Clarke replied calmly as Lexa pulled out her chair for her and she took her seat. “Thanks, Babe,” Clarke smiled at her.

“Of course,” Lexa replied with a knowing glance.

“Alexandria, I’m glad to see you still have your manners,” Alex said firmly.

“I certainly didn’t get them from you,” Lexa said through tight lips.

“Whoa!” her father held his hands up. “Can we just have a nice lunch together please?”

“God, I hope so,” Lexa said under her breath as she looked around for who to order a drink from.

“So, Alex,” Clarke leaned forward. “I’m sorry, may I call you Alex?”

“I wish you would,” He replied with glee.

“Lexa mentioned you were here with a plus one yourself. Why are we dining with just you?” Clarke offered up her best innocent eyes.

“Denise wanted to relax a little before catching up with her family. We drove down from Vermont last night and stayed in an Air bnb nearby and she’s just wiped,” Alex picked up his beer and took a long swig.

“Right, unlike your daughter who works for a living who traveled all day from Los Angeles, where for us it’s only ten o’clock in the morning,” Clarke smiled coldly at him. Before he could say anything more, she tapped him on the arm in a harmless, charming way and said, “So tell me about you! What do you do for work?”

Lexa drowned them out and excused herself to speak to the bartender about ordering something to drink. She returned to the table with a bottle of rosé and two glasses and found Clarke and her dad in a pissing contest about their stock portfolios.

Clarke was keeping up with him just fine and it was too sexy.

“Okay!” Lexa set a glass in front of Clarke. “Dad? Why don’t we pump the brakes on work talk, huh?”

“We haven’t even talked about your recent promotion,” Alex goaded Lexa. Clarke reached for the wine before Lexa was done pouring it. “I heard about it from Aden! Did you get promoted, Kiddo?” Alex brightened.

“Not exactly,” Lexa shrugged. She didn’t want to talk to him. It showed, and she didn’t care. She could be fake and professional at work. She could be polite and cordial in most social settings. She could even pretend with success to be in love with Clarke, but she could never give him the satisfaction of pretending to be nice.

He didn’t deserve it.

“It was a reorganization and I ended up with a lot more work, but I still have the same job and the same title,” Lexa added.

“So, Clarke,” Alex tried to be friendlier than he should, and Clarke let him get away with it for now to spare Lexa some of his attention. “How did this one lock up an absolute catch like you?”

“Excuse me?” Clarke squinted at him. Her resolve hardened quickly.

“What made you settle for this kid?” he gestured at Lexa with his beer.

“Dad,” Lexa sighed.

“I didn’t ‘settle’ for her. I had the privilege of chasing her and getting her to notice me,” Clarke sat up straighter and spoke in a stern voice that was brand new to Lexa. It startled her to pause mid pour. 

They had rehearsed that Lexa chased Clarke. They had rehearsed that Clarke was reluctant. They practiced and planned something else.

“She’s one of the finest women I’ve had the honor of getting to know,” Clarke said fiercely.

Lexa coughed to hide her face turning red with too much hope that Clarke was telling the truth.

“Lexa?” he scoffed into his drink and pointed at his daughter with his thumb. “You’ve gotta watch out for her. She’s always been a player.”

“That would be you, Dad,” Lexa gulped from her wine glass. “Why is Denise really not having lunch with us? Are you sorting out your pick of the bridesmaids now while she takes a nap?”

“Alexandria!” He huffed.

“Alexander!” she mimicked him.

“What is this anyway?” he pointed between the two of them. He was getting annoyed. Clarke was too smart and it had him flustered. “Why is this the first I’m hearing of you, Clarke? Is this for real?” Clarke grabbed Lexa’s hand under the table to reassure her that they’d be okay.

“What exactly are you implying?” Lexa eyed him. Of all of the people to question it, she never thought it would be her semi-estranged father that never really knew her to begin.

“Clarke,” his tone was thick with vinegar and self-righteousness. “I’ve had enough mistresses to know that you’re not really her girlfriend. She’s too tense and you’re too calculated. Where’s your wedding ring? You leave it at home or is it up in the room?”

“What the actual fuck, Dad?” Lexa gasped.

“Lexie, I swear to god, that mouth!” he let out a frustrated sigh. “Your ‘girlfriend’ has indents from her wedding ring on that left hand. I’m not an idiot, Lexa. I raised you.”

“Actually,” Lexa pointed at him with her wine glass in hand and a sassy brow. “You didn’t. You left, and mom raised me on her own.”

“I’m divorced!” Clarke said firmly. “I work with my hands and there’s wear and tear from years of it.”

“Nice cover up,” Alex grinned with a shady wink. “You don’t own a design firm at all, do you? Did you pick her up on the way from the airport?” Alex asked Lexa. “Do you two even know each other?”

“We don’t have to sit here and take this,” Lexa huffed and stood up. “Let’s get out of here, Clarke.”

“You’re just like me, Alexandria,” he held his hands out wide. “You always have been. You couldn’t hang on to whatshername because you wanted to fuck around!”

“She couldn’t hang on to me,” Lexa stood up straighter and looked down on him sitting at the table. “I’m nothing like you. I never have been, and you wouldn’t know it even if I was because you’ve been gone the whole time.”

“Lexa,” Clarke reached for Lexa’s arm to back away from the table.

“Stay out of my way this weekend,” Lexa pointed hard at him and snatched the bottle of wine off the table. “And don’t call me again.”

“Oh, Lexa, come on!” He called after her as she grabbed Clarke by the hand and marched out the door.

“Lexa! Slow down!” Clarke pleaded as she hurried to keep up.

“I told you!” Lexa snapped once they were outside. She kept walking. She wasn’t sure where they were going, but she needed to move. “I told you he’s disgusting!”

“Yes, and you were totally right!” Clarke reassured her. She followed Lexa through the gardens towards the woods. Lexa swung the nearly full bottle of rosé in her hand and took a hard pull from it.

“He does this every time I see him!” Lexa shouted. They were further from the houses now and no one could hear them. Lexa stomped forward towards the trails. “He ruins everything! He always has!”

“I’m sorry!” Clarke said loudly. It made Lexa finally pause and turn around to face her. “I’m sorry you have to put up with all of that. It’s not right.”

“And the shit he said about you?!” Lexa chugged from the bottle again and then passed it to Clarke. “Unacceptable.”

“Well, I mean, he’s right. I’m not your girlfriend,” Clarke grimaced.

“But he doesn’t know that!” Lexa snapped and flailed a hand in the air. She picked up a fallen stick and hurled it into the forest. “You can’t just say shit like that to people! It’s not okay!”

“You’re right,” Clarke shrugged and decided her best move would be to let Lexa blow off steam before trying to sort it out.

“I’m not a player, Clarke,” Lexa stopped hard and turned to Clarke who was trying to keep up behind her. Clarke stopped abruptly, chest to chest with Lexa. Her breath was short from the clip they were keeping up, and it hitched in her throat as they came face to face alone in the woods. “I’m not. I never was. I’m not like him.”

“I know that,” Clarke looked Lexa hard in the eye. “But it’s fine if you are. That’s not really any of my business.”

She wanted it to be Clarke’s business. It was important to Lexa that Clarke thought highly of her and it was driving her crazy that she cared about it.

“I’m a good woman,” Lexa muttered.

“Lexa,” Clarke’s throat felt thick. She hated watching the hefty defeat settling on Lexa’s face. “Of course you are.”

“I know I’m a liar,” Lexa gestured at Clarke. “And I’m mad at him for calling me out on something I’m lying about, and that’s just ridiculous,” Lexa winced. She was just so frustrated and stressed to the core. She wanted so badly to not be lying about Clarke, but here they were. “Maybe he’s right.”

“He’s not,” Clarke’s tone was stern. She took hold of one of Lexa’s hands and squeezed it. Lexa pinched her eyes shut. She wanted to cry. This was all such a fucking mess and it shouldn’t be.

“Can we just,” Lexa tipped her head back so her disheartened tears wouldn’t show themselves. “Can we please just walk and not talk for a little while?”

“Yeah, of course,” Clarke leaned forward and squeezed Lexa into a tight hug. 

“That’s,” Lexa tried, but the words fought to come. “That’s not helping.”

“It’s not fake,” Clarke shrugged still in the embrace.

“I know,” Lexa scowled. Clarke felt the shaky breath Lexa took and it made her sad.

“Why don’t you take me down to the lake?” Clarke asked quietly as she pulled away. 

It was crushing her to see Lexa like this. Silly and annoyed and not interested in surprised kisses was a different brand of frustration that Clarke kind of liked. This ran deep and the feelings rising in her chest to protect Lexa and tear down whoever caused this were suffocating.

“It’s this way,” Lexa pointed. She didn’t let go of Clarke’s hand while they walked in silence down to a small beach made up of rocks. Clarke held tight to Lexa’s while they stood and looked out over the water. She brought the wine to her lips with the other.

Time felt funny while they watched the water and avoided looking at one another. Clarke knew what was happening, but she didn’t know what to do with it. She knew what she wanted, but she felt like it wasn’t hers to take.

“You’re a really good woman, Lexa,” Clarke finally broke the silence.

“I’m starting to wonder about that,” Lexa looked down at her feet.

“So you lied about me being your girlfriend,” Clarke shrugged. “You did it for the right reason,”

“I don’t know if there is such a thing,” Lexa squinted in the sun.

“The morals surrounding it are a little gray at best, but you have been an absolutely excellent girlfriend,” Clarke finally broke the spell and turned to look at Lexa. “You’ve treated me better than anyone I’ve ever been with for real.”

“It’s all fake,” Lexa scowled.

“No, it isn’t,” Clarke said with a new seriousness of purpose. 

Lexa met Clarke’s eyes, but she couldn’t bring herself to say anything. The frustrated tears were back.

“You can say whatever you want, but whether we liked it or not, you’ve been you all along and I’ve been me. The relationship might be fake, but you never were,” Clarke chewed her lower lip and her gaze traced the edge of the lake. “I don’t know what the fuck happens on Sunday when we get home, but I hope this is always who you are with me.”

“Clarke,” Lexa got out in a small whisper. Her eyes were full of tears that pleaded not to fall. “Please don’t.”

“Lexa, I,” Clarke stammered. She didn’t know what to do. If she crossed the line now, there was no going back.

“I can’t,” Lexa clenched her eyes shut. Two large tears rolled down her cheeks. “Not right now. I’m too stressed to think straight. I need to be very on really soon, you look absolutely beautiful in that dress, and I’m just so upset.”

“I’m sorry,” Clarke stammered in a flustered whisper. “I took it to far.”

“I can’t be fake right now,” Lexa’s throat was tight. “It’s not funny anymore and I’m too tired and we’re going to have to do so much of it.”

“I wasn’t,” Clarke tried, but she was cut off.

“Hey, Lexa! There you are!” Aden called out from up the trail.

“Fuck,” Lexa hissed and tried to wipe her eyes. “Clarke, I seriously think I’m going to snap.”

“Look at me,” Clarke spun Lexa towards her. “I’ve got you, okay?”

“What?” Lexa whispered in a panic as she watched Aden approach over Clarke’s shoulder.

“Trust me,” Clarke’s voice was steady and quiet. “I’ve got you,” she added again lowly. Lexa’s body relaxed the tiniest bit at the affirmation. “He won’t know. Play along.”

“Hey, you two!” Aden was chipper and a little drunk as he skipped over the rocks.

“Hold still, Lexa! I don’t know what the fuck you got in your eyes on that trail, but I can’t get it out if you keep moving like that!” Clarke said in an unnecessarily loud voice. Lexa exhaled with relief while Clarke pretended to prod at her eyes.

“Hey, Aden,” Lexa nodded at him.

“What happened? Are you okay?!” He asked, alarmed.

“Yeah, we were goofing around on the trail with some flowers. Something got in Lexa’s eyes, but I think I got it,” Clarke smiled at him. “Are you good, Lex?” Clarke asked with more purpose. The concern in her eyes softened something in Lexa’s chest.

“I think I’ll be okay,” Lexa tried her best to smile sincerely.

“Well, shit! Glad it worked out!” Aden clapped Lexa on the shoulder. “We need you in a few. They want to go over the order of things for tonight. We’re gonna kick off in a little bit.”

“Sounds good, bud,” Lexa’s chest was tight, but she hid it as they walked out of the woods with Aden. Halfway up the trail, Clarke reached for Lexa’s hand again. 

“I’ll see you in a little bit?” Lexa asked Clarke as they parted ways back at the inn.

“Definitely,” Clarke smiled fondly after Lexa as she went inside with Aden.

“You’re not looking as perky as usual, Clarke,” Anya slurred from the corner of the porch. She was stretched out in an Adirondack chair with her feet up on the porch railing and a bottle of rosé and a glass on the armrest.

“I’m certainly not as relaxed as you are,” Clarke sighed, happy to have the company but still riddled with emotion after the roller coaster she just stepped off.

“One of the bridesmaids has a younger sister with a ton of weed,” Anya wagged her eyebrows with a greedy smirk. A girl in her early twenties shot Anya a flirty wave from across the lawn. Anya blew her a kiss back.

“I’m pretty sure that girl is straight, Anya,” Clarke cocked her head and watched the girl slip her arm around the waist of a guy Clarke remembered from the night before.

“Everyone’s a little gay after an open bar, Clarke,” Anya winked. Clarke couldn’t help herself and she laughed. “What’s up with you? You look sad.”

“I am sad,” Clarke heaved a big sigh.

“Sad? At a wedding? When you’re here with my absolute best friend?” Anya dumped a heavy pour into her glass, then handed the bottle to Clarke. “What the hell is the matter with you? I thought you were cool.”

“We were supposed to have lunch with her dad today, but only got as far as one round of drinks,” Clarke gave Anya a knowing look as she sat down on in the chair beside Anya.

“That fucking guy!” Anya growled. “What happened?”

“He called us out. He knows it’s fake,” Clarke looked longingly through a big window at Lexa who was standing with Aden and a group of guys. Lexa’s profile was perfect. She had a stoic posture built on a lifetime of athletics and the pride of making her own way.

“Is it, though?” Anya looked over the top of her sunglasses as she examined Clarke.

“What?” Clarke’s voice cracked.

“C’mon, Clarke,” Anya’s stoned smile spoke volumes. “I’m her best friend. I know what’s going on.”

“I don’t know what to do anymore!” Clarke covered her face in her hands and one tiny sob she’d been holding back since Lexa started crying escaped.

“Shit!” Anya sat up abruptly and became more attentive. “Fuck! I was just giving you a hard time! Oh, balls, you’re crying. Okay!”

“I’m sorry!” Clarke laughed through her tears at Anya’s reaction. “I’m just such an idiot!”

“Alright. I’m definitely pretty high, and this is not my first bottle of wine today, but I’m sure we can get through whatever this is together,” Anya had a sense of calm that worked its way across the armrest to Clarke.

“She’s just so fucking upset,” Clarke sighed and wiped her eyes carefully so as not to ruin her makeup. “And it made me so upset to watch it, because,” Clarke paused. 

If she said it out loud, she couldn’t take it back.

“Because you’re in love with her,” Anya smiled genuinely.

“She cannot find out,” Clarke didn’t deny it.

“Uh, yeah, sure, okay,” Anya rolled her eyes. “I won’t tell her if you won’t.”

“I have no idea what to do,” Clarke’s breath hitched as she tried to catch it and calm herself down.

“There’s the whacky notion of sitting down and talking to her about it,” Anya offered up.

“Right, what with how chill she is and all the pressure she isn’t currently under,” Clarke pounded from the bottle of wine.

“She might be more chill than you think,” Anya gave Clarke’s shoulder an affectionate squeeze. “Lexa is very logical and very literal. Think about it.”

“Think about what?” Clarke blinked away stray tears. She was tired and frustrated and overwhelmed and knew it was just the beginning.

“If you tell her you’re into her, and she’s also into you, you guys won’t be pretending you’re together anymore. You’ll just be together. Nothing to worry about if it’s real,” Anya tapped her temple. “Logic.”

“Has she said anything to you about me?” Clarke asked hopefully.

“Not really, no,” Anya lied.

“Best friend code?” Clarke eyed her.

“I can neither confirm nor deny that,” Anya relaxed back into her chair. “But I suggest you two go over the terms of your contract before you both fucking explode.”


	13. And It Was Real This Time!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It turns out that honesty is the best policy.

Everyone found their way under the tent in the yard around six for cocktails. The bridal party and those in the wedding were down by the lake preparing for tomorrow’s ceremony. Family and friends from out of town that came a day early were all invited to join in the festivities. 

Clarke stayed with Anya on the porch until it was time to show up. They sat in silence and drank their respective bottles of wine. Clarke contemplated what she was going to do about the fact that her heart was running in a completely different direction from her brain. She needed to get it under control before she hurt someone that had instantly became extremely important to her.

Anya contemplated her best options to get her new friend to set her up with another joint and where on the property she could get the best snacks.

“Looks like it’s time, Clarke,” Anya heaved herself out of her chair with a satisfied exhale. “You good?”

“Not even kind of,” Clarke sighed and let Anya help her up. “But I’ll do what I do best and fake it.” Anya offered a sympathetic look alongside her arm to escort Clarke over to the party.

“For what it’s worth,” Anya said quietly as they approached the crowd. “I think you’re good enough for her, and I approve of whatever does or does not happen.”

“What?” Clarke whipped her head to Anya who was drifting towards a table covered in charcuterie boards and crudités.

“Oh, hell yes,” Anya’s hungry eyes dragged her away.

“Wait!” Clarke hurried after her.

“You heard me, Clarke,” Anya wiggled her fingers over the selections of local cheeses and vegetables laid out before her. “Lexa’s brilliant, but she’s also a dummy. Trust your gut and figure it out.”

“Now?! While we’re here in the middle of all of this?” Clarke snapped.

“Or wait until you get home and sort it out in front of all of our friends and shut the fuck up about it until then,” Anya popped a cube of cheddar into her mouth. “Your choice.”

“Hey,” Lexa approached from the inn. She looked fresher and calmer. Her full curls were styled in a low ponytail and hung over one shoulder. The evening sun caught them just right and Clarke tucked her hands into the pockets of her dress to keep from reaching out and touching them.

“Hi,” Clarke said softly. Their eyes spoke more than they could. Anya took it in and rolled hers.

“I’m gonna find my new friend and get a drink,” Anya chuckled and left with a heaping plate of food.

“How are you doing?” Clarke asked carefully.

“I’m okay,” Lexa nodded. “I shot gunned a beer with Aden and his best man, and it helped more than I thought it would,” she added with an optimistic grin. “Took some time to run over my notes and collect myself before I have to do this toast.”

“I had a glass of wine with Anya who’s been scoring weed off one of the bridesmaid’s little sisters,” Clarke nodded after Anya who had her arm around one of the girls and both of them were laughing.

“Sounds about right,” Lexa said flatly.

“You look nice,” Clarke blurted out. She braced herself for incidentally setting Lexa off, but Lexa just smiled softly in return.

“So do you,” Lexa replied gently.

“Thank you,” Clarke felt her cheeks pinking under her rosé glow.

Cheering and clapping began at the edge of the tent as the bride, groom and wedding party made their way up from the lake. The moment between the two of them evaporated into the bustling party all around as hugs and handshakes and excitement became a comfortable blur on all sides.

“Hello!” Aden took command of the crowd as he and Emily took their place at the head of the crowd. He had a microphone and a glass of champagne. “Emily and I are both over the moon to have you all here with us to celebrate our wedding. We’re going to take a few moments to thank some people, as well as have a few words from someone so important to making this day possible. After that, we’re going to get down to what we’re all really here for and have some food and some drinks and some good times!

“We know many of you have traveled far to be here, and we are so grateful. To all of the fine bridesmaids and groomsmen, we could never have pulled all of this off without you. Our parents, who have been so gracious, we thank you from the bottom of our hearts. To the owners and staff of the inn that have made this weekend a completely extraordinary experience for us and our loved ones, we cannot say thank you enough.”

Enthusiastic applause went through the group.

“I asked someone special to say a few words tonight as she was the major catalyst to Emily and I finding one another,” Aden grinned at Lexa through the crowd.

“That’s my cue,” Lexa said quietly to Clarke before working her way up front.

“Come on up, Lexa!” Aden beckoned her forward.

“Good evening, everyone,” Lexa took the mic from him with poised elegance while receiving a glass of champagne from his fiancé. Servers brought glasses through the crowd to make sure everyone was prepared for a toast. “I’m Lexa, I work for Grounder Inc with Aden. I’m the executive director of west coast sales now, but many, many moons ago, I was a brand new sales manager, and when he was a fresh college graduate, Aden was my intern.”

“Yo,” Anya appeared next to Clarke. She put a whole toast point in her mouth at once. “She seems better.”

“I’ve trained over a hundred people in my career,” Lexa carried on. Clarke was unaware that Lexa had such a knack for public speaking but wasn’t completely surprised. “Some of them were more memorable than others, but this guy,” she paused and wrapped her arm around Aden beside her without endangering her glass. He had a look of pure glee on his face as he leaned his head on her shoulder. “This one is unforgettable.”

“She is,” Clarke compulsively smiled at Lexa and Aden’s interaction.

“This kid, well, I’ll just come out and say it,” Lexa shared a look with him. “He was a fixer upper.” The crowd chuckled politely. Lexa gave them just enough time for it. “I was pretty young myself back then, and I was worried about letting him down.”

“You could never,” Aden jumped on her words.

“Of course,” Lexa chided him. “He was more devoted than my entire team put together. He marched into my office after his first few weeks of getting to know the job and getting to know the interns he was up against and the team he was supporting and he slapped a blank pad of paper down, and he said ‘I know I’m not the best, but I want to be the best. I’m going to leave that with you, and I want you to fill it up with all the things I need to do to get better,’ and let me tell you all something,” Lexa winced comically. “I was intimidated by my own intern!”

Everyone laughed again and Clarke found herself in the thick of them.

“That really happened,” Anya whispered. “I told her to fire him.”

“So, I did the only thing that made sense, and I accommodated his request. I filled his notepad with instructions on how to improve. He showed up early every morning and he stayed late every single day. He worked so much harder than everyone else. He made me realize there were plenty of ways that I could be doing my job better,” Lexa nudged him. She caught the eye of his parents who were arm in arm and positively beaming. “And it was never about the money. I assure you, on his intern’s salary, it was never about the money,” she said out the side of her mouth.

“No shit!” One of the other Grounder guys shouted from the front. 

“You know I don’t get to choose!” Lexa catered to the group of work friends. “I always ask for the highest pay rate they offer me, and you all know it!”

“She does,” Anya nodded and let out a little laugh. “They have a love/hate relationship with her up top. She gets results, and usually the best ones, but never at the expense of her people.”

“That doesn’t surprise me in the least,” Clarke couldn’t take her eyes off of Lexa working the room. She was so engaging, so funny. Every look she passed around was meaningful.

“He tells anyone who will listen that I made his career, but what he doesn’t know, because I wasn’t ready to let him in on it yet, is that he played a part in making mine.” Aden gasped and dramatically turned to her in surprise. “Because I started taking his advice around going for roles that were out of my league, too. Once, when he was up for a big promotion, I helped him prepare and we worked so hard together. He was the least qualified by a longshot and much younger than anyone else that was gunning for it.”

“Least qualified by a lot. Like, A LOT, a lot,” Aden chimed in. Everyone laughed.

“As we wrapped up our work together for what I didn’t know was the last time, I asked him how he was feeling about the interview,” Lexa continued in her story teller’s voice. “He said that he felt as ready he was going to get, and that no matter what happened, he’d be totally fine,” Lexa caught Clarke’s eyes in the crowd. “Because the worst thing that could happen in shooting his shot was that they’d say no. And if they said no,” she paused, her eyes still on Clarke. “Then that would leave him right where he already was with me, and that was pretty great already.”

Anya wordlessly rested a hand on Clarke’s shoulder. 

“And they’d know who he really was and what he was really made of,” Lexa swallowed. 

She knew she needed to move her gaze off of Clarke, but she couldn’t.

“Well, they said yes,” Lexa finally revealed. Friendly laughter went up all around and broke the spell. “And I knew they would, because Aden has the most ambitious and gracious attitude toward absolutely everything in his life. They promoted him. He had to move to the east coast, and it turned out that his office was right across the hall from accounting,” Lexa turned theatrically to Emily who laughed. “And I let him get settled in his new office before I called him up to grill him all about it.”

“You waited like, a day,” Aden giggled.

“I live in Los Angeles. There’s a time difference,” Lexa shrugged sarcastically. Laughter followed. “This guy didn’t even have his stuff unpacked yet, and the first words out of his mouth on our call were about the beautiful woman he saw in the hallway all the time that worked in the office across from him,” she paused for the sweet chuckles she knew were coming. 

“He asked me for advice on asking her out for a drink, which, I do not necessarily condone office romances, but there are some grand loves that cannot be stopped,” she pointed sternly at the work friends near the front. “But I reminded him that he was as ready as he was going to get, and the worst thing that could happen is that she’d say no,” Lexa’s silly smiles bloomed into the warmest grin. “And she didn’t!”

“You didn’t know she was sentimental and sweet too, did you?” Anya looked at Clarke out of the corner of her eye.

“I did not,” Clarke replied quietly.

“Emily, Aden, I have no doubt that you will never have a shortage of happiness, love, joy and success in your marriage. With an eternal optimist who strives to be the best he can every minute of every day, I know you’re in good hands,” Lexa said to Emily. “I’d like to raise a glass to the hardest working, kindest man in the room, and the sweetest, most generous woman he’s found to share is life with,” Lexa held her glass up. “It’s my pleasure to share this with you all. To Aden and Emily!”

Cheering went up all around the crowd as glasses clinked and everyone drank.

“Puke, Alex Woods coming at you from eight o’clock,” Anya gagged as she spoke quietly to Clarke.

“I see you decided to stay,” Alex said discretely to Clarke.

“I don’t know why you think I wouldn’t have,” Clarke kept a fake smile on her face and her eyes trained on Lexa and Aden in a tight hug up front.

“How much is she paying you?” He sneered. Clarke scoffed, let her eyes fall shut and shook her head.

“Anya, I’m gonna go get some air,” Clarke downed her glass, set it on a nearby table and walked away.

“We’re outside?” Anya held her hands up, puzzled.

“What’s your deal these days, Anya?” Alex raised a brow at her. She silently flipped him the bird and headed back towards the food.

Under the tent, Lexa shook hands and gave hugs around the work friends and Aden and Emily’s family and friends. She kept looking up for Clarke but couldn’t find her in the group. After being passed through a few more circles, Lexa glanced at her watch, then back up at the group again.

“Hey,” she nabbed Anya by the elbow who was flirting with a tray of hors d'oeuvres. “Have you seen Clarke?”

“She took off a little bit ago,” Anya replied. “Nice toast, Lex. Perfect amount of comedy and perfect amount of cute. I knew you’d smash it.”

“Thanks,” Lexa continued to study the faces around her for Clarke. “Did she say where she was going?”

“No, your dad said something to her and she bounced,” Anya replied. Lexa’s eyes darkened as she moved through the crowd with more purpose. The faces and celebratory laughter all blurred together as she grew exponentially more concerned.

It had been a long and confusing couple of days.

Lexa checked her phone. No messages. She tried to keep calm knowing that it could be as simple as the restroom being a long walk away and they were in a large crowd. The sunset had passed its prime and the sky hinted at getting dark. She caught sight of Clarke walking around to the back side of the inn.

“Clarke!” Lexa called after her. Clark turned, alarmed. Lexa jogged a few steps to make the trip as short as possible. “Clarke, wait!”

“Hey, I’m sorry, I just, I need a minute,” Clarke held her hands up as she climbed the steps up onto the porch.

“I’ve got plenty of minutes,” Lexa shrugged. “Would you like one of mine?”

“Jesus Christ, you’re cute now, too?” Clarke grit her teeth and shook her fists.

“I’ve been cute all along, you just thought it was fake,” Lexa muttered.

“I don’t think this is a good idea anymore,” Clarke spat out. “I feel like I’m wrecking this for you. This is important to you and I’m here sucking up all of your attention.”

“I asked you to come with me!” Lexa yelped. “This was all my idea! And it’s working and you’re absolutely killing it and we’re doing fine!”

“I’m not fine!” Clarke began urgently, then pulled it back to a whisper at the end.

“What did my father say to you? Was it gross?” Lexa snapped up straight. She had a hand on one hip and pointed the other behind them towards the party. “I swear to god, I’ll kill him.”

“Stop, no, that’s not it,” Clarke leaned her back against the side of the building and covered her face in her hands.

“Hey, come on, look at me,” Lexa tried. “Whatever it is, I’m pretty sure we can figure it out. It turns out we’re a pretty great team,” Lexa softened into a half smile.

“I know,” Clarke bit her lip and looked away. “That’s part of the problem.”

“Did someone else find out? Did Anya get too stoned and friggin’ tell someone?” Lexa didn’t know what to do. She couldn’t figure out what was wrong or what would help. She was on fire on the inside that something or someone had set Clarke into this mood. Overwhelmed by what that meant, she chose to lean into her protective friend role.

“Lex,” Clarke reached for her hand and took a step off the wall. “I think we should call it off. Let’s get in a fake fight, or I’ll pretend I got an important call or something. Oh!” Clarke gasped. “I’m fake allergic to shrimp! That’s perfect! I’ll go eat some and go up to the room and stay there until we leave!”

“Clarke, what on Earth is going on?!” Lexa shook her head. “Did I do something wrong?”

“No,” Clarke winced. Lexa’s lost and concerned eyes that she might be responsible made Clarke’s stomach turn. “I don’t think you ever could.”

“Then why don’t we go get a drink and have some fake laughs and fake hugs and fake kisses down at the party?” Lexa tried.

“Because I don’t want them to be fake,” Clarke’s voice cracked.

Lexa snapped to attention and Clarke couldn’t look at her. 

“I’m so sorry,” Clarke’s throat was tight.

Lexa responded by reaching out, threading her fingers into Clarke’s hair and backing her against the side of the inn. She didn’t know if it was the right thing to do, she didn’t know if that’s what Clarke was asking for and she definitely didn’t know if it was a good idea, but she knew it wasn’t fake when she kissed Clarke as hard as she could.

And it was so wonderfully real when Clarke kissed her back. There was no confusion, no guessing, no wondering what if when she felt Clarke relax with absolute relief and honest desire as she leaned into Lexa’s touch.

“I never wanted them to be fake,” Lexa said in a hushed voice as she pulled back. Clarke searched Lexa’s expression for the joke. For the gag, for the lie they had been living, but it wasn’t there.

“I really hoped you were going to say that,” Clarke pulled Lexa back in. Lexa’s lips were sublime. Clarke gripped the front of her shirt to close every little space between them. She inhaled deeply at Lexa’s strong hands on her waist. Lexa moved with confidence now that she could, and it was way too good.

“I should’ve said something sooner,” Lexa said quickly. Clarke looked right back into her with reassured and satisfied eyes.

“You’re so good, Lexa,” Clarke’s chest heaved as she caught her breath. “This has been so fucking hard. I was trying to wait until we got home, but I just couldn’t.”

“Why should we?” Lexa shrugged. “Who cares?”

“I thought you were going to lose it when you woke up wrapped around me, but you didn’t say anything or make a move. I just figured you didn’t want me like that, and it was only me that was playing for keeps,” Clarke said as she finally tangled her fingers in Lexa’s curls.

“You knew about that?!” Lexa snapped, aghast. Clarke burst out laughing. It was a real laugh from the bottom of her belly. It felt so right. “I thought you were sleeping!”

“I liked it too much,” Clarke said sheepishly. “So I pretended I was.”

“I think I like you too much,” Lexa’s cheeky grin was so wide, it in danger of scampering off her face.

“Get over here,” Clarke’s words got lost on Lexa’s lips. All of the twinkling lights around them flicked on. It startled them out of their embrace.

“We should probably get back down there,” Lexa nodded her head reluctantly towards the party.

“How long do we have to stay?” Clarke raised a brow. Lexa stiffened as she considered Clarke’s implication.

“Hm. Hopefully not that long,” Lexa let out a goofy grimace. Clarke laughed again and it rolled through Lexa in perfect waves.

“Come on, let’s go,” Clarke took Lexa by the hand and pulled her back towards the party. “Everyone must be wondering where you went.”

“Well, there they are!” Anya greeted them with delight. She was clearly higher and holding a cupcake and swinging a rocks glass of clear booze around to the music. “What’s up? You guys good?”

“Yes,” Lexa grinned and wrapped her arm around Clarke. Clarke snuggled into Lexa’s side and kissed her cheek. 

“Super good,” Clarke added on. Lexa turned and kissed Clarke’s lips. They shared a look that went on a little too long to be for show.

“Wait,” Anya pointed between them, crossing her cupcake and glass back and forth. “Did you two finally kiss each other?” Anya asked discretely through closed lips. “I mean, like, for real, though?”

“I kissed her,” Lexa replied. “And she kissed me back.” 

“Splendid!” Anya shouted with celebratory joy. “I already told Clarke that I think she’s good enough for you, so go eat, drink and be merry already!” Anya danced away.

“What do you say, Honey?” Lexa had a smug, silly smile on. “Can I get you something to drink.”

“I’d love that, Babe,” Clarke matched her joyful look as they headed for the bar.


	14. And Then It Wasn't Fake At All!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> And they lived happily and sexily ever after.

“I thought we were never going to leave!” Clarke gasped as Lexa pushed her into the wall inside their room. High on declarations of new love and buzzed on summer cocktails, they stayed at the party until it was socially acceptable to disappear.

“You weren’t making it easy to stay,” Lexa said between wet kisses on Clarke’s neck and chest.

Clarke, frisky with the blurred lines between them officially erased, wouldn’t let go of Lexa. She was introduced to everyone, made them laugh, learned how they knew Lexa and relished in all of the gushing about how amazing Lexa was, all while at the very least hand in hand.

They enjoyed lawn games with Aden’s friends who couldn’t get enough. Lexa was a cornhole ace and Clarke was an expert in trash talk. Anya kept them flush with snacks and the groomsmen made sure their glasses were never empty. Clarke didn’t have to lie when she joined Aden and Emily’s parents in going on and on about Lexa.

Dinner was full of lively hands under the table. Dancing became too dangerous to continue in public, and they slipped out during a rowdy number between Emily and her college friends.

“If you thought I was handsy when it was fake,” Clarke raked her fingers through Lexa’s hair and pulled her closer. “You’re in for a treat now that it’s not.”

“Your skin is just,” Lexa couldn’t finish her thought. She needed her mouth on any exposed part of Clarke she could get. “I’ve been thinking about it since the first time I saw you.”

“I’ve been thinking about your ass,” Clarke kept one hand tangled in Lexa’s hair and reached the other down to grip a full handful of Lexa’s toned butt. Lexa jumped and they both laughed.

“I told you fake me doesn’t like that,” Lexa’s smile was perfect as she glanced down at Clarke’s chest. She was too excited, too giddy, too full of pent up want to pretend she wasn’t completely and totally taking every inch of Clarke in.

“Yeah, but real you fuckin’ loves it,” Clarke smirked as she untucked Lexa’s shirt and pushed a hand up her back. Lexa was lean and defined and Clarke had been starving for the chance to move her hands with time, care and intention all over Lexa’s body. Every time they touched for show, it drove Clarke further over the cliff of want for the real thing.

“Real me is into all kinds of shit you’re gonna like,” Lexa slid her open palms up Clarke’s bare thighs under her dress. Clarke’s hips twitched forward in response and she gripped a tight fistful of Lexa’s hair. “Up until now, I was just being polite,” Lexa caught Clarke’s lips with her own and pushed her further into the wall.

Clarke fumbled with the buttons on Lexa’s shirt. She lost focus over and over as Lexa’s nimble fingers skated and teased over the curves of her hips and thighs and waist under her dress while deepening every kiss. They stalled, too lost in the kisses they could finally enjoy with Lexa’s hands on Clarke’s bare waist. Lexa’s shirt hung open, gripped in each of Clarke’s fists.

As tongues slipped past lips, pent up passion took over. They tore at one another’s clothing with fervor. Lexa’s shirt lost a button on the cuff. Clarke clutched Lexa’s strong shoulders and exhaled a deep, long satisfied breath at being able to take what she wanted after being tortuously deprived. 

They couldn’t get close enough together. Couldn’t consume the other fast enough. Couldn’t stop.

“Son of a bitch!” Clarke groaned as Lexa ground her thigh into her. She cast a wild hand to the side and knocked over the lamp and the clock on the nightstand. Lexa glanced at it, alarmed. “Fuck it,” Clarke pulled her closer. “I’ll buy a new one,” Clarke brought Lexa’s lips back to hers.

Lexa pulled her off of the wall as she gathered Clarke’s dress to push it up over her head. The moments where the fabric came between them felt too long. Clarke yanked it the rest of the way off before pushing Lexa across the room towards the dresser. Clarke’s makeup and hair products sitting on top all rattled and toppled over on impact. Lexa whipped her head around to check the damage as Clarke worked her belt.

“Should we do something about that?” Lexa yelped as Clarke snapped her belt off. She paused, stock still, as she took in Clarke’s entire body. It was different this time when it was for her.

Clarke responded by dramatically sweeping everything off the dresser onto the floor with one arm and catching Lexa’s mouth in a hard kiss.

“God damn,” Lexa said breathlessly. “You’re something else.”

“And you’re fucking sexy when you’re in control, so stop dicking around and do something about it,” Clarke growled as she worked her hands into Lexa’s dress pants. 

Up until that husky demand, Lexa still clung to the shreds of tact and decorum she’d forced into place from the moment she and Clarke made their agreement. By grabbing Clarke by the waist, spinning her around and boosting her up onto the dresser, every last obstacle came down.

Clarke had a shocked and thrilled look in her eyes at Lexa’s strength as they both reached for the clasp on her bra at the same time. She wrapped her legs around Lexa and jerked her as close as she could get. All sight and sound outside of Clarke’s naked breasts left Lexa’s senses. Clarke’s bra landed near the broken lamp as Lexa took one supreme nipple between her lips.

“Holy shit,” Clarke whimpered as her head thudded against the wall behind them. She arched forward into Lexa’s capable hands and careful mouth and dug her nails into the celebrated shoulder blades before her. Lexa responded in kind by tightening her grip and using her teeth.

Unable to take it much longer without reaching her breaking point, Clarke pushed Lexa back with force onto the bed behind them. Lexa’s delightfully stunned look and kiss-swollen lips were too divine. Clarke gripped the hems of Lexa’s pants and whipped them off before climbing on top.

Desperate hands permitted to roam free now that the deceptive veil was lifted never stopped. Breathy whispers of each other’s name replaced witty banter as their bodies fit together and found perfection. Time became fake as everything between them evolved to be all too real. They left the world behind as desperate cries of the other’s name got lost in the twisted sheets.

Clarke fell onto the mattress sweaty, satisfied and spent half on top of Lexa in the same state. She wove a fist in Lexa’s messy hair with what strength she had left. They both took in deep breaths as their heart rates slowed and their minds settled down from Cloud Nine.

“Clarke,” Lexa tried, but her chest still heaved. “You are absolutely incredible.”

“We are absolutely incredible,” Clarke had her eyes closed and rested her sweaty forehead on Lexa’s shoulder. Lexa pressed a kiss to the top of Clarke’s head before letting her body fully relax. Soft kisses and gentle caresses eventually sent them both to sleep.

They awoke the next morning just as tangled up as the night before, but this time they could indulge in it. Slow kisses and soft hands began before they both opened their eyes.

“Good morning, Honey,” Lexa said through a sleepy smirk as the tips of Clarke’s fingers snuck across her belly. 

“Good morning, Sugarbear,” Clarke, eyes still closed, smirked back. Lexa cracked into a surprised laugh. Clarke opened one eye to catch Lexa’s reaction.

“I hate it a little less when you’re naked, but I still hate it,” Lexa’s slow morning giggle perked Clarke up.

“I’m just fucking with you,” Clarke snuggled closer into Lexa with the most content smile. Her hair was a wild mess. Her makeup was all over the place and there was a bite mark on her shoulder. Lexa winced and lightly ran a finger over it.

“I, uh, it looks like I bit you,” Lexa winced.

“I know you did,” Clarke gave a little shrug under the blankets.

“I’m sorry,” Lexa kissed Clarke’s forehead.

“Why?” Clarke asked. “I fuckin’ loved it.”

“I didn’t mean to mark you up like that without asking first,” Lexa replied with a relieved smile.

“You probably shouldn’t look at your back, then,” Clarke mumbled, still half asleep as her hands found their way around Lexa’s body. “Because I definitely didn’t ask if you minded that I was clawing the shit out of it while you were working that magic on the dresser.”

“No magic required on tits as perfect as yours,” Lexa smirked. Clarke lifted her head and quirked a brow at Lexa.

“I liked polite Lexa a whole lot, but I like honest Lexa way more,” Clarke wiggled her shoulders. 

“So, about that,” Lexa paused to catch Clarke’s soft, morning lips in a kiss.

“About what?” Clarke asked before going back for a few more.

“I feel like we should talk. I don’t know what we should say? But I feel like we should talk,” Lexa’s voice had tiny hints of insecurities in it. 

“Alright,” Clarke agreed after sneaking in a few more kisses. “I’ll start,” she took one more that Lexa wished lasted longer before propping herself up on one elbow so she could see Lexa clearly. “I like you, Lexa. A lot. You’re kind and you’re sweet and you’re thoughtful. You took the time to really get to know me. Technically twice, since one version of me was fake,” Clarke glanced to the side in thought as she briefly mulled it over. “But you genuinely cared about who I am. You make me laugh and you make me feel good about being myself.”

“Of course I care about who you are,” Lexa’s eyebrows knit together. “You’re absolutely amazing.”

“As are you,” Clarke kissed Lexa’s forehead, then her nose, then her lips. “You’ve got admirable manners and brilliance that doesn’t quit in the streets and you fuck like a wild animal in the sheets, so if you don’t want to be with me for real, I will not be able to be around you.”

Lexa burst into laughter and dropped a hand over her face. She was flattered, shy and always caught off guard while somehow turned on by Clarke’s frank humor. 

“I mean it!” Clarke caught the laugh and gave Lexa a nudge to move her hand away so she could drink in that smile.

“I know you do,” Lexa calmed her laughs down and looked up at Clarke with utter adoration. “You make me laugh like no one else can, too.”

“So that’s it for me,” Clarke’s quippy grins melted into a very sincere smile. “I’m in if you are. I wasn’t looking for this at all, and genuinely thought we were just going to have a weird time and maybe be friends, but now that I have you, I’m not letting go.”

“It’s amazing how authentic the experience of getting to know you has been despite that we were lying to everyone the whole time,” Lexa said as she pushed some of Clarke’s wild curls behind her ears.

“We were lying to everyone else, but it required us to be extremely honest and open with each other,” Clarke shrugged. 

“I guess that’s true,” Lexa nodded.

“Are you okay with this? Are you comfortable making this thing real?” Clarke asked sincerely.

“It kind of always has been real,” Lexa’s features softened into the sweetest expression. “You woke something up in me that I didn’t know deeply I had buried. I don’t know if I’ve ever had this kind of fun. You’re just so real, so authentic, so sure of yourself and everything around you. I know we haven’t known each other long, but I’ve watched you bring joy to literally every person you interact with.”

“Lexa,” Clarke said bashfully. 

“Including me,” Lexa finished firmly. “I like myself more when you’re around. Everything is better. I don’t know if there’s a word for that, but that’s what it feels like.”

“I felt a connection with you from the first night we went out,” Clarke admitted. “And I knew you did, too. I didn’t want to press it until we got home, but Maine’s unrelenting charm, and yours, pushed me over the edge.”

“I didn’t know I was charming,” Lexa grinned.

“That’s part of why you’re so charming,” Clarke couldn’t stop herself from leaning down to give Lexa another kiss.

“I feel like you’re charm embodied,” Lexa threaded her legs through Clarke’s to bring her closer. “I’ve been in over my head from the minute Octavia showed me your picture.”

“What?” Clarke yelped. “You have not.”

“That is actually a fact,” Lexa glanced away. Clarke kissed the blush appearing in her cheeks. “Oh shit, I just realized something.”

“What?” Clarke asked, concern ghosting across her morning smiles.

“This was Octavia’s idea,” Lexa sighed. “There is going to be absolutely no living with her now that we’re together for real.”

“A small price to pay,” Clarke dismissed it with a wave of her hand. “What time do we need to be dolled up and ready?”

“The ceremony starts at four,” Lexa replied. They both glanced at the nightstand where the alarm clock should be. It was still on the floor with the busted lamp.

“Right,” Clarke nodded at it. “Remind me to give them my card for damages.”

“I figure if we’re ready by three we can catch up with Anya beforehand,” Lexa stretched and yawned.

“Perfect,” Clarke kissed across Lexa’s chest and stomach. “Plenty of time to have you all to myself.”

They stayed in bed past breakfast. They couldn’t get enough of one another. Clarke made use of the soaking tub that had a perfect view of Lexa in the glass shower. The tub was large enough for two if Lexa hung her legs over the side. They took lunch in a bath with a bottle of wine, long kisses and heartfelt, honest laughter.

Not wanting such a fantastic, plush bed to go to waste, they took advantage of it once more before getting dressed for the wedding. 

Despite having the whole day to get ready, they were almost late. 

The ceremony was brief. It was a beautiful summer evening with a perfect breeze rolling in off the lake. Aden and Emily decided to forgo the religious route and the focus was on love, family, and friends who had become family. Clarke was extra snuggly during some particularly sentimental passages and Lexa was all for it.

“I gotta say,” Anya said to Lexa with pride as they walked back from the ceremony by the lake to the inn for the reception later that day. She rested a hand on Lexa’s shoulder who was holding Clarke’s hand. “This thing looks really good on both of you.”

“Thank you, Anya,” Lexa replied. She and Clarke could not stop grinning. “It feels good.” 

“How much have you already relayed back home to our friends?” Clarke raised a knowing brow.

“Oh, literally everything,” Anya chuckled as they found their way through the barn to their seats. “They’re thrilled, and we are all requested to come to the bar tomorrow on our way home so we can all celebrate you two.”

Anya and Lexa had the table full of Grounder employees roaring with laughter. Clarke gently wiped away tears from her eyes as she leaned against one of the guys from Anya’s team while the two best friends did spot on impressions of one another. She felt like she already knew them somehow, and they thought they already knew her by proxy. Clarke instantly charmed the table and had all of them up and dancing as soon as the floor was ready.

“Hey,” Anya sidled up to Lexa who was in line for drinks. Her eyes were glued to Clarke busting a move with Aden and his friends. She was silly, she was sexy, and she was too confident about both. 

“Hi,” Lexa smiled warmly.

“I’m proud of you, Lex,” Anya said quietly and earnestly. No insult, no sarcasm, all love. “Really. I know this all was so much for you, and I know you didn’t want to let anyone else in any time soon. Maybe ever.”

“I didn’t so much let her in as she kicked down the door,” Lexa joked. Anya cracked up. “But I’m really glad she did.”

“Me too,” Anya nodded, then wrapped her arm around Lexa’s shoulder and gave her best friend a squeeze.

After a night of very little sleep and a very long day of travel that had Anya in the window seat, the three of them pulled up to the dive bar back home. Anya was asleep in the back seat as Lexa eased into a parking spot.

“Are you ready for them?” Lexa nodded her head towards the bar that had their friends inside.

“Who cares about them,” Clarke waved a hand. “They love us both. They’ll be fine,” she said before leaning across the console to catch Lexa’s lips. 

“Thank you again, Clarke,” Lexa said sincerely. “Really.”

“For what?” Clarke asked.

“I guess I don’t know,” Lexa glanced down and let out a little sigh. “Taking a chance on me, maybe.”

“How about from now on, we just focus on what’s real and we don’t worry about what used to be fake?” Clarke’s eyes were full of love and warmth and comfort. Anya stirred in the back seat and Clarke winked at Lexa. “And let’s get out of here as quickly as possible, because I want to get you home and get that fine ass bent over my-“

“Okay! Okay! I’m awake! You made your point!” Anya grumbled as she pushed the door open and dragged herself out of the car. Lexa and Clarke laughed as they followed her into the bar.

“Hey!!!” Lincoln, Raven and Octavia cheered as they walked in. Clarke and Lexa were arm in arm and only a little bashful at the attention.

“Look at these two love birds!” Raven clapped her hands together.

“Anya was clearly drunk when she was sending all of her messages, so we might have a few questions,” Octavia chuckled.

“Congratulations, Boss Lady,” Lincoln winked at Lexa as he handed her a full pint.

“I’m not your-“

“I know, I know,” Lincoln laughed. “Clarke, nice work,” he had another wink and pint for Clarke.

“Thank you, Sir,” she nodded at him.

“Okay, alright, now that you’re both here,” Octavia settled into her seat. “Tell us everything! What happened?”

“We got so good at pretending to date, that we decided to just date for real instead,” Lexa shrugged and glanced at Clarke to pick it up.

“Might as well, right?” Clarke mirrored the sarcastic shrug and all of their friends groaned.

“Did you two fuck in my bathroom?” Octavia asked after a hesitant beat of silence in the group.

“What?!” Lexa yelped. Clarke laughed.

“No!” Clarke swatted at Octavia’s leg. 

“Well, I for one, am into it,” Raven raised a glass.

“Me too! Here, here!” Octavia picked up her beer.

“I’ve seen it up close, and I’m super here for it,” Anya added her pint to the mix.

“To you two,” Lincoln added his.

“To us,” Lexa turned to Clarke with the biggest smile.

“To us,” Clarke replied. They all clinked their glasses. “Now get over here and kiss me for real.”


End file.
